Tread Carefully
by windyrat
Summary: What if, when Kenny was teaching Clementine how to drive, she angled the wheel just a *little* differently? What if that small difference didn't send them flying into a ditch, but instead, allowed Clementine to safely use the breaks, allowing them all to get away unscathed? AU, Follows events of ANF with slight changes. *I don't own the walking dead; only my OCs.
1. Prologue

A rusted red car cruised down the road carefully. The sun was currently setting, casting a golden hue over the land. To the left of the road, a dense forest stood tall. To the right, there was a clearing filled with tall, gold-brown and green grass.

"Doin' good," Kenny spoke up from beside her. "Just keep doin' what you're doin'. Easy on the clutch," He added, Clementine smiled over at the man, keeping her eyes on the road. Kenny wearing wearing a thick green jacket with a white shirt on, as well as gray jeans and black shoes. His beard had since thickened, and he'd gotten himself a black eyepatch to wear over his right eye. On his head, he wore an orange and white hat over a gray mullet.

Clementine looked up in the rearview mirror and frowned. AJ sat quietly, fiddling with his foot. He wore gray overalls, with a dark blue shirt and a green long-sleeved shirt beneath it. He also had a dark gray bandana tied around his neck, acting as a scarf.

"Where's your blanket, goofball?" Clementine asked. Kenny perked up, looking over his shoulder, and sighed, turning and standing on his knees in his seat. Clementine felt uneasy with him doing that.

"Kenny, c'mon, sit down." Clementine scolded, giving him a sideways look.

"Oh, yes ma'am," He said with a chuckle, sliding back down in his seat. "I'm sure he'll be fine a few more minutes without his blanket, anyways."

"He'll he fine." Clementine said. She was trying to convince herself more than anything; AJ seemed healthy, and he responded positively to Clementine and Kenny, but...

"Y'know, he won't need that silly little blanket forever anyways. I say we head down to the coast, maybe try and find a boat again, and live off the water. Teach you how to fish, how to sail... You too, buddy!" Kenny said, turning back to AJ with a smile. AJ only frowned and kept playing with his foot.

"I'm worried about AJ." Kenny spoke up, sitting upright and looking out the window. "I mean, I just can't get im' to talk yet. Duck was gabblin' a mile a minute at his age. Wasn't full sentences, but it was somethin'."

"AJ's a survivor. He knows making too much noise will get him in trouble." Clementine said, hoping to reassure Kenny.

"Maybe..." Kenny mumbled. Clementine blinked and began easing her foot off the gas. Kenny looked at her with a frown. "What're you doin'?" He asked. Clementine jerked her head up at the road. Kenny looked up and frowned when he saw a rather large, dead walker in the road.

Clementine carefully steered the car around it, and then eased her foot onto the has again, going the speed they'd been going previously.

"Imagine what would've happened if I wasn't watching the road." Clementine said with a smirk. Kenny scoffed.

"Hey, one eye here, remember?" He shot back playfully. AJ giggled in the backseat, which brought a smile onto Clementine's face.

"'Course, we don't have to head to Florida. There might be more communities along the way that are open," Kenny offered.

"Either works for me." Clementine said with a shrug.

"Alright, then." Kenny said with a nod. "It's decided; if we find a community, we stay. If not, we go down to Florida."

* * *

"Empty." Clementine grumbled. Kenny sighed, looking over his shoulder at Clementine.

"Keep lookin'. There has to be somethin..." He mumbled. He stood up and walked into the aisle on the right of Clementine.

On Clementine's back, AJ stirred and whimpered. "I know you're hungry," Clementine cooed softly to him. "We'll find something soon." She murmured, looking back at the box.

She and Kenny had stopped in front of a gas station, hoping to find some food. To their dismay, it appeared that most people had the same thought they did-_ 'if it's secluded, it's most likely been missed.'_

The place had been picked clean, save for a few bottles of water.

Clementine stood up and kicked the box away, turning to look at the metal shelves around her. Like most gas stations, this one was small, with a counter at the front, as well as a cash register. Behind the cash register was a row of metal cabinets with glass doors.

There were a few refrigerated sections along the wall, but it was common sense that anything in there had either expired or wasn't helpful. The walls and floor where a plain white, as well as the ceiling. To the right of the cash register were the restrooms, and to the left was the entrance.

From the next aisle over, Clementine heard Kenny curse under his breath, and she couldn't help but to tense up. When Kenny got frustrated, it wasn't pretty.

The shelves were almost empty, but there were a few boxes of crackers- animal crackers and cheese crackers. Clementine gathered them up in her arms and hastily stuffed them into an almost empty duffle bag.

"Find anything?" Clementine called.

"Just some fuckin' seed packets." Kenny said. Clementine quirked a brow and went around to the same aisle Kenny was on.

"Seeds? In a gas station?" She asked. Kenny stood up straight and held one up for Clementine to see.

"They could come in handy." Clementine said.

"What, you know how to garden?" Kenny challenged.

"Well, no, but i'm sure there are instructions on it." Clementine suggested. Kenny flipped the packet over, peering at it, and hummed, raising his eyebrows.

"Huh. There are."

AJ suddenly let out a cry, causing Clementine to flinch and look over her shoulder at him.

"AJ, what's... Wrong..."

Clementine trailed off, her eyes trailing to the entrance of the store. There was what appeared to be a hispanic man with a green-brown bubble jacket and a brown shirt beneath it, as well as brown jeans. He had dark brown eyes as well as Her eyes went wide and Kenny stepped out, planting himself in front of Clementine and AJ.

"Woah, I didn't mean to scare your kid." The man said, holding his hands up in surrender. "Saw you three pull in, and I couldn't help but notice that you don't seem to have very many supplies."

"What's it to you?" Kenny challenged, his voice slow and clear.

"Wanted to help you." He said. "The name's David. I live in a community a few miles west of here. I could take you there, help you out."

Kenny rose an eyebrow and glanced back at Clementine. Clementine nodded at him, and Kenny turned forward again.

"How do we know if we can trust you?" Kenny asked.

"Please. Just trust me." David said softly, his eyes flickering over Clementine and AJ. "You'll get yourselves killed out here. I can't let that happen to a few kids."

Kenny sighed. "Fine. But if you try anything..." Kenny warned. David rose an eyebrow at him.

"Sure. Follow me."


	2. The Junkyard

Javier peered through a pair of black binoculars, frowning. In the distance, moonlight outlined tall mountains, with lush, dark green grass across a field behind them. In the distance, a small fire burned, and a herd of muertos lumbered forward slowly, a chorus of groans being heard from where Javier stood behind his van. They trampled over the fire, putting the already dying flames out and leaving nothing but glowing embers.

"Dammit. I left my water bottle." He said, lowering the binoculars. "Herd just got there."

"Just under four hours. Come on, let's get moving." Kate said, going around to the passenger side of the van. Javier went around and got into his van, placing the binoculars on the dash quietly.

The seats were black, made with hard cushioning- however, over the years, the cushions had worn down and become limp. The steering wheel had worn down in the spot where Javier usually placed his hands, another telling factor of its age.

The van was light tan in color, with small headlights and brakelights. There were three rows of seats in the van, with the middle and front row seats divided into two. Mariana slept on her back in the back row, Gabriel slept upright in the middle row, his arms crossed and head lolling, and Kate and Javier sat in the front row seats.

"We need to find some gas soon." Kate said, a worried look on her face. She scribbled in her notepad, which contained paper wirh edges that were starting to turn yellow. "And more food, too."

"You're the boss." Javier said with a smile. "You're the one with the notes."

Kate snickered. "Really? I was just using this thing to draw." She said, flipping her notepad closed. "I'm gonna sneak a smoke." Kate said, pulling a tin can out of her back pocket. Javier giggled girlishly.

"I still can't believe you found weed."

"Are you kidding? People were probably growing this before they realized they needed food." Kate replied with a smirk.

"You want me to roll it? Last time you rolled a joint, it wasn't pretty."

"Hey, i've improved since last time." Kate shot back. "And besides, you're driving." She added, neatly rolling up the joint. She pulled a silver lighter out of her pocket, flicking the it open, and lit it.

Soon, the smell of smoke and weed began to fill the car. "You wanna smoke?" Kate asked, offering him the joint.

"Yeah, sure." Javier said, taking the joint and inhaling. He coughed when the smoke filled his lungs and he passed the weed back to Kate.

"We are setting an awesome example." He croaked.

"Don't judge me." Kate said. "When David told me he had kids, I told him I am not changing who I am around them. He told me not to worry about it, but I could tell he was worried about it." She said. "I love those kids, but Gabe's been so moody lately. It doesn't help that he keeps reminding me that i'm not his mother whenever he's upset... Sometimes I just want to leave him at the side of the road."

Javier turned his head, giving Kate a scowl.

"I'm kidding!" Kate said quickly. Javier huffed and turned his eyes back to the road.

_Sure you are._

"Cut him some slack," Javier said. "I mean... The second you start getting boners, the world goes dark for him." Kate scoffed at that.

"That sounds delightful compared to dealing with bloody underwear." She shot back.

"Ugh. What's that smell?" Mariana's voice spoke up. Javier glanced over his shoulder, seeing her propped up on her elbows with a raised eyebrow.

"Uh, we are smoking weed." Javier said truthfully.

"Don't tell Gabe." Kate added, looking back at Mariana. Mariana sat up.

"I already know you two do drugs. He's the one who told me." Mariana said.

"Way to put it lightly..." Kate muttered. Gabriel's head stirred, and he looked up, frowning.

"Ugh... You're smoking in the car now?" He asked with disgust.

"Alright, everyone roll your windows down so you don't get a contact high." Javier said, rolling his own window down. Soon, cold air circulated into the van, carrying the scent of fall with it. Cold, crisp air filled Javier's lungs, and he couldn't help but to relish in it a bit. Hr closed his eyes for a moment, inhaling deeply, and released it.

"You smell that? That's the smell of fall." Javier said with a smile. Kate quirked an eyebrow at him, smirking a bit, while Mariana smiled and copied Javier. Gabriel rolled his eyes and looked outside.

"Look," Kate said, nodding to something to their right. Javier followed her gaze and saw what appeared to be a junkyard.

"Huh. Think we'll find anything?" Javier asked.

"Maybe. People leave all kinds of shit in strange places these days." Kate said. Javier nodded and eased off the gas, slowly pulling into the junkyard. There was a single muerto standing in the middle of the path, shaking and groaning. It seemed unsteady, as if it would fall over with a single nudge.

"Stay back," Javier warned. He grabbed a crowbar off the dashboard and opened his door, approaching the muerto. It reached for him with bony fingers, snarling and revealing rotting teeth. Javier swung the crowbar at it, hitting its head. It fell, a notoceable dent in its head now.

"Alright, everybody out." Javier commanded, turning to the van. the doors opened, and Kate and Gabe stepped out.

"Keep your eyes peeled for anything useful." Kate said. "Food, water, gas..."

Javier nodded and turned to the van. Mariana was praying. Javier smiled at his niece. "You praying for our safety?" He asked. Mariana looked up at him, smiling.

"I'm praying I find a candy bar." She said. Kate crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Shouldn't we be worried about more important things?" She asked.

"You heard the crowd," Javier said with a grin. "Please, god let there be candy bars!"

Kate smiled and rolled her eyes. "Hey, where are you going?" She asked Gabriel, who'd begun walking away. In response, he glared at Kate before continuing on his way. "Have fun..." Kate said. She rolled her eyes and walked away, grumbling under her breath.

"They're always fighting. I hate it." Mariana said with a frown. Javier sighed, looking down at Mariana.

"Things have been hard lately. We just need to find other people. And Mariana," Javier added as she started to walk away. "If you run into trouble, you find one of these cars and hide and you don't come out until me or Kate comes to get you. You understand?"

Mariana nodded once in understanding, a serious look on her face, and turned, walking away. Javier went into the van, collecting their siphoning pump, as well as a can for gas.

Javier scanned the junkyard, his eyes narrowed. Gave was sitting atop a rusting storage unit covering chipped blue paint; Mariana was inside of what looked like a phone booth; Kate was inspecting some dirty old mattresses.

To the left of the phone booth was a rusting car without windows and wheels.

_ It's worth a try._

Javier turned, treading over to the car, and pried open the gas door on the car with his crowbar. He carefully slid a hose into the tank and his can, and then began pumping.

There was some gas that came out, but not a lot. Javier frowned and sighed, pocketing the pump and picking the can up. Further into the junkyard, there was a wall of rusted metal, and at the front was another rusted car. Javier glanced at Mariana and headed over to his niece.

"I need a pen. Or a crayon. Something I can write with." She said, standing up before Javier could even say anything. "I- I know i'm supposed to be looking for supplies, but I just remembered a story my mother used to tell me." She said. "I want to write it down... Because i'm afraid that if I forget, i'll forget myself, too."

Javier smiled warmly at her. "Kate has a pencil, if you need it," He said. Mariana smiled at him.

"Alright, thank you Javi!" She said, quickly slipping by Javier and heading over to Kate. Javier watched her go, shaking his head a little, and headed further into the junkyard. He approached the storage unit that Gabriel sat on, peering up at his nephew.

"You alright, buddy?" Javier asked. Gabriel looked away, a sad look on his face.

"I'm... In a bad mood, okay? I want it to go away, but it won't. I'm just... Sick of that damn car. I wanna meet other people." He said. Javier sighed.

"I know, bud." He said. "I'm here if you need me, alright?"

In response, Gabriel looked away, frowning. Javier turned away, approached a car that was in even worse condition than the last.

Not much luck there.

A few feet away to the left was a white car that was in pristine condition compared to the rest of the contents in the junkyard. However, based on the way it was parked, and the accumulation of rusted materials around it, it became clear that, like many other cars, this one hadn't been used in quite some time.

Javier pried open the gas door with his crowbar and began siphoning gas. To his astonishment, there was a considerable amount flowing from the car to his gas can. Javier smirked victoriously and stepped back, admiring the white car.

Taking a closer look at it, it appeared to be a large white van of some sort with a blue stripe on the side.

_ Most likely used for business at one point. Not much of that happening anymore, though. _

"Nice job," Kate praised, walking over. Gabriel hopped down from the storage unit, going further into the junkyard. The dirt path became more narrow, but that didn't stop him.

"Gabe, wait," Javier called out to him. Gabriel paused and looked at Javier.

"You and Mari stay here," Javier said to Kate. "Gabe and I will see if we can find anything ahead."

Kate frowned at that, but didn't protest.

"Be careful." She said as Javier turned, following Gabriel into the junkyard.


	3. Trailer House

Javier watched as Gabriel climbed over a pile of trash and rusted metal. He was, thankfully, using a ladder, but even then, the ladder wasn't tall enough to get him fully over the pile.

However, Gabriel was careful when he climbed- He hopped down, landing gracefully on the other side. Javier followed as Gabriel pressed on.

The dirt path was wide enough where two people could walk side by side comfortably. On his left and right, there were mounds of rusted metal, as well as other junk.

_Guess that's why they call it a junkyard. _

The piles of metal and trash that towered over Javier made him feel a little bit claustrophobic, but in hindsight, it was good that they were there- as far as he could see, there weren't any muertos on the path.

"Gabe," Javier called out softly. "Stay behind me."

"I know what i'm doing." Gabriel replied flatly.

"I never said you didn't, I just want to make sure you'll have time to get away if something jumps out at us."

Gabriel's face melted into a look of understanding and he stopped, allowing Javier to pass him. Then, he resumed.

The night was eerily silent, which sent chills down Javier's spine. The path began to curve left, and when they walked around the curve, Javier was surprised to see a wooden portable home.

"How'd _that_ get here?" Javier wondered aloud. Gabriel walked around to stand on Javier's right side, peering at the mobile home cautiously.

"It was probably here before all of this other garbage." Gabriel said with a shrug.

"Probably... Watch my back, i'm going in." Javier whispered, crouching down a bit. Gabriel nodded and turned, looking out at the path. Javier crept up to the white door with chipped paint on it. He tried the door and felt his heart sink when he discovered that it was locked.

"The board," Gabriel spoke up. "I think I can see a hole behind it."

Javier leaned around the corner of the house and hummed in satisfaction when he saw that Gabriel was, in fact, right. Javier stepped away from the door and rounded the corner, moving a sheet of scrap metal.

"Good job, buddy," Javier praised, earning a small, proud smile from Gabriel.

Javier kneeled down and crawled through the hole on the bottom of the house. There was seldom any grass below the house, but above him, there was a trapdoor.

Javier smirked and crept towards it, taking a deep breath. Once he was below it, he carefully pushed up, finding that it opened with no resistance. He peeked through the crack into the house, and to his relief, it was deserted.

He stood up straight, climbing into the house. The floor was a black and white checker pattern, with a small white table beneath the window on Javier's left. To his right, there were a few off-white cabinets, and ahead of him was a metal shelf with assortment of food. Javier couldn't help but to smile victoriously to himself; they'd hit the jackpot.

Javier turned, opening the door from the inside. "Gabe, go get Mari and Kate! They need to see this!" Javier called out. Gabriel looked at him with curiosity before obeying, getting up and leaving.

A few moments later, Gabriel walked in, looking around with a bored look on his face. Mariana followed, and then Kate came in, each inspecting the place with anxious looks on their faces. Gabriel looked over at the metal shelf, and then his eyes went wide. He darted over, picking up two small plastic cups with cream-colored contents in here.

"Pudding!" He exclaimed happily. "They have honest to god, pudding!" He said, turning and darting over to Mariana. He gave her a cup of pudding, a huge grin on his face. Javier couldn't help but to smile at his niece and nephew.

"I don't know..." Kate said anxiously, eyeing the place fearfully. "This seems suspicious. We should just take our gas and leave."

"What?!" Gabriel exclaimed, rounding on Kate. "We should stay here! There's food, walls, a bed-"

"Someone else's food. Someone else's walls... Someone else's bed... We should leave."

"Javi!" Gabriel said, looking at Javier with pleading eyes.

"Sleeping on a mattress does beat sleeping in the van..." Mariana said carefully.

"Kids, go wild. You've deserved it." Javier said with a smirk, putting his hands on his hips. They both cheered and zoomed past Javier, digging in. Kate huffed and went outside. Javier rolled his eyes at her behavior, but nevertheless, he followed her out there.

"We should've left." Kate said almost as soon as Javier got outside.

"Hey, if it makes you feel better, we'll pack up and leave tomorrow morning." Javier said. Kate crossed her arms, looking at Javier with a hint of suspicion.

"It just seems like you're always siding with them over me." She said. Javier sighed, crossing his arms.

"Look, Kate, I-"

Before Javier could finish his sentence, Kate was holding a chocolate bar out to him with a smile on her face. "Here. She'll like it better from you, since you're the favorite."

Javier smirked and pocketed the candy bar.

"I'll go get the gas," Javier said, walking down the path. Kate watched him leave, a smile lingering on her face, before going inside to check on the kids.

The night had a peaceful feeling to it, with a gentle breeze whispering to Javier. Of course, nothing good lasts forever. After climbing over the mound of junk that divided the path, Javier spotted the gas can and approached it, kneeling down to pick it up.

That was a mistake; soon after, he head the familiar click of a gun being cocked.

"The fuck you think you're doin' with our gas?" an angry voice snapped. Javier held his hands up in surrender, standing up. He could see that he was surrounded by at least four people.

_ His gas? This car doesn't even belong to anyone!_

"I'm sorry," Javier said, careful to make sure his voice didn't betray how he felt. "We needed the gas-"

"We?!" The man snapped. The man, whose shoulders were squared and his legs at shoulder-width apart, wore a dark blue beanie, as well as a gray shirt and a black leather jacket. He had some stubble growing on his chin and face, and it appeared as if he was bald beneath the beanie. "You got people with you?"

_Crap._

"You best hope that your people defend you." The man snapped. "Go on. We're gonna pay them a little visit." He said, jerking his gun forward. "Get a move on."

Javier couldn't resist the pit that formed in his stomach. What could he do to protect his family? They wouldn't even see this coming!

Despite Javier's want to protect his family, his common sense told him to move, lest he wanted to be killed. Javier swallowed hard and nodded, turning and going back down the path and over the mound. His heart sank even further when the house got back into view.

"Stop." One of the men ordered. Javier obeyed as the one with the beanie approached the door, glaring at it.

"We got your boy! If you want him to live, you best come out real slow!" He barked. A few moments went by.

Nothing happened.

The man's expression became even more irate as he opened the door. Javier felt a cold gun press into his back, and he followed the man into the house. To his surprise, it was empty, save for a few cups of empty pudding on a white counter to the right. The man grabbed one, inspecting it, and threw it down with anger.

Javier carefully placed his foot on a gray mat on the floor and discreetly slid it over the trap door.

"Look, I get it. You been on the road for days... You're starvin', and you think you found a gold mine! But I get this sneaky fuckin' feeling..." He began, turning and punching Javier in the stomach. "...That you're full of shit."

Javier, having his breath knocked out of him, coughed and collapsed to his knees. The man looked up at one of his companions.

"Lonnie, stay here and keep an eye on him. Rufus, Badger, come with me. We gotta radio the situation in."

_ The situation that __**you**__ created?_

Javier got to his feet slowly as the three other men filed out. An african-american man with toned arm muscles and a lean face kept a gun pointed at Javier.

"Look... This doesn't have to go-" He began, only for a cough below them to stop his sentence.

"What'chu got under there, boy?! What're you hiding?!" The man- Lonnie- questioned, bristling. He aimed his gun at Javier with renewed vigor and tip-toed over to the mat, kicking it out of the way. He kneeled down and opened the trapdoor beneath, and for a moment, Javier's blood ran cold. Right below the trapdoor, Kate, Gabriel, and Mariana were hiding, and they looked up with fearful looks on their faces.

Javier had to act fast. He lunged forward, punching Lonnie square in the jaw, then went for his gun. Lonnie recovered quickly and kneed Javier in the stomach, successfully pushing Javier away. On the counter, there was a crowbar; Javier swiped it off quickly and swung it at Lonnie blindly, hitting him square in the temple. The door burst open, and the man stormed in, his eyes wide. Javier panicked and tossed his crowbar to the side. The man scowled and shook his head, aiming his gun at Javier.

"Wait, no no no don't-" Javier exclaimed quickly.

Instead of being shot, the man suddenly swung his gun at Javier's face, knocking him out.

* * *

**(A/N) Thanks to everyone who's read so far! Feedback and reviews are welcome, and trust me, i'll start branching away from the ANF script a bit within the next few chapters. Stay tuned!**


	4. Heroine

In the dark of night, Clementine hid beside the road, concealing herself in the ense overgrowth of the forest surrounding the road. Stray locks of hair fell over her face, causing her to huff in annoyance and reach up, tucking them beneath her hat.

Kenny would kill her if he found out about what she was doing.

Beside Clementine stood an unsteady tree- one push and it would topple over onto the road. A few crows cawed in the distance and fluttered out of the canopy of green and brown leaves, vanishing into the midnight blue sky. Clementine shivered, gripping the shotgun in her hands tightly.

She needed to get away from this place. Had to.

A steady hum began to sound in the distance, and when Clementine looked up, she saw a pair of white headlights bolting down the road.

_Perfect. I hope this is a New Frontier truck..._

She had to wait for it to get closer. As it did, she could see that it was an eighteen wheeler. Behind it was a black metal crate with boards crudely attached to the sides.

The truck was quickly approaching. Clementine stood up and pushed on the trunk of the tree, sending it toppling onto the road with a loud creak. The truck swerved hard and ran off the road into a ditch on the other side of the road. Clementine internally slapped herself- of _course_ it would do that.

Clementine sank back into the overgrowth, watching the scene in front of her unfold. A man with bindings on his hands opened his door and fell out, landing on his side. The man was wearing a white baseball jersey with blue numbers on the back, as well as a blue long-sleeved shirt beneath the jersey. He was also wearing gray-blue pants and black shoes. His hair was dark brown, as were his eyes.

In front of the man, a pistol had fallen; he grabbed it and scrambled to his feet, running around to the other side of the truck. That's when Clementine saw it; another man running into the forest.

"HEY!" The man in the jersey man bellowed. The man in the distance- who sported a sleeveless black leather jacket, as well as a black shirt- froze and spun around, holding his hands up in surrender. Slowly, the jersey man lowered his gun, and the other man fled.

Well... It's now or never.

Clementine stood up and crept out of the overgrowth and onto the road. The man ahead of her looked down, cursing under his breath. Once Clementine was behind her, she pumped the shotgun once, getting a bullet ready to be fired- just in case. The man froze and let out a defeated sigh.

"Yeah. Alright." He said, dropping his pistol.

"That's good. Just keep looking forward." Clementine spoke. She stepped forward, swiping the pistol off of the ground and pocketing it.

"Look, I'm having a bud fucking day here, okay?"

Clementine rose an eyebrow at him. "Well... That's obvious." She replied. "Now don't do anything stupid, 'cause i'm not as nice as you. I won't hesitate." She said, her voice dark and serious. She lowered the shotgun and turned, walking around the truck.

"You're a kid..." The man breathed in disbelief. "Woah- wait, did you do that? With the tree?" Javier asked. Clementine ignored his question, climbing into the truck and inspecting it. Her heart sank when she saw almost nothing of value, save for an apple that'd tumbled to the opposite side of Clementine. She carefully climbed in deeper and picked the apple up, inspecting it.

It seems okay to eat.

Clementine slipped out of the truck. "I was trying to stop the truck. Tree fell slower than I thought it would." Clementine took a bite of the apple and lazily cocked her gun. "Put your hands up."

"Look, i'm the victim here." The man said as Clementine approached him, searching his pockets.

"This is payment. For saving you." Clementine shot back. "Close your eyes and count to-"

"Wait, just... I need help." The man said, turning to Clementine. "My family, they're trapped in a junkyard with some bad dudes."

Clementine narrowed her eyes. "I know where that is... What's in it for me?" She asked, a suspicious look on her face.

"You want a car? We have a van." The man offered. Clementine hummed in satisfaction.

"I'll take you to the junkyard if you let me have your van."

"Deal." The man said immediately.

"Alright. After you," Clementine said. The man turned and began walking down the road. Clementine followed, her expression cold.

"The name's Javier, by the way..." The man said. Clementine looked up at him, silent for a moment, before replying.

"Clementine."

"Well, nice to meet you, Clementine." He said, looking forward. This took Clementine off guard- was Javier insane? She'd pointed a gun at him and threatened him!

"If you say so..." Clementine said awkwardly, looking away.

* * *

After walking in silence for a while, Clementine bristled when she saw a herd of walkers ahead of her, shuffling across the road.

"The herd..." Javier breathed. Clementine cursed quietly.

"This way," She said, ducking into the forest. Javier followed suit.

"That's the herd of muertos that my family and I were running from."

Clementine scoffed. "Muertos..." She repeated, testing the word out. The word felt foreign to her.

"What do you call em'?" Javier asked.

"Walkers."

"What do you call the ones that run?"

"They're all fucking walkers, okay?" Clementine snapped. "Sorry, i'm just... Not used to being around many people."

Javier scoffed. "Yeah, it shows."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Clementine asked defensively.

"It means you could sure use a dust-up on those people skills." Javier shot back. The groans became louder, and in the distance, Clementine noticed lights. It suddenly occurred to her that they were by Prescott.

"Look, we're gonna have to wait it out. There's a settlement just up ahead that we can use."

She shook her head, letting out an agitated sigh. She pulled her knife out and cut Javier's bindings. "Don't make me regret this..." She grumbled. She pulled out Javier's pistol and handed it to him.

Javier, in turn, hummed in satisfaction at this. "Alright, follow me." Clementine said, standing up. She made a mad dash towards the lights, Javier following.

They broke through the trees, and as they ran, Clementine shot some of the walkers down. "Keep going, they'll open up!" She called out to Javier. Her eyes locked on the red metal gates ahead of her, with walls crafted from scrap metal surrounding it. They ran up to the gates and pounded on them. "Open up!"

"I can't risk it until you clear a path. There's too many of em'!" A blonde bearded man- Tripp, if Clementine remembered correctly- called down to them. Clementine and Javier both turned to the crowd of walkers around them. Clementine didn't hesitate; she took aim, shooting down as many walkers as she could. When she ran out of ammo on her shotgun, she drew her own pistol, loaded it, and took aim.

When her finger pressed the trigger, the gun clicked and made a popping sound, but the bullet didn't fire. Panic flared up inside of Clementine.

"Fuck! These bullets won't fire!" She exclaimed, looking at her gun with wide eyes. A walker lunged for her and Clementine let out a strangled yelp, barely keeping the walker from sinking its rotting teeth into her.

Javier turned to her, shooting the walker. Clementine took the chance to throw the walker down and stomp on its head.

"There's still too many!" The man above them said. Clementine's heart sank. She was out of ammo, didn't know how much Javier had, and there was still a considerable amount of walkers.

For a moment, Clementine began to wonder what it was like to be eaten by walkers- torn apart, until she was no longer recognizable...

"YEEEEE HAH!" A voice bellowed in the distance. Clementine perked up, looking in the direction of the voice. To her surprise, most of the walkers' attention had been pulled away from Clementine and Javier to someone in the distance. Clementine heard bellowing gunshots and roaring laughter in the distance.

"C'mon, Shade, they're droppin' like flies!" A high-pitched voice cried out.

Javier looked at Clementine with a confused look, but Clementine honestly had no answer for what was going on right now.

"What the-? Oh, you've gotta be fuckin' kidding me!" Tripp exclaimed. A few moments later, the gates burst open beside Javier. "Move your asses!"

They didn't need to be told twice; The pair hurried inside, and behind them, two people- each riding their own horse- zoomed inside as well. Tripp slammed the gates shut and turned to the horse riders, who were both giggling and snickering.

"God dangit, one of these days those gates are gonna close and you'll both be on the other side!" Tripp snapped. The girl on top of a black horse pulled on her reigns, turning her horse to look at Tripp.

"Bold of you to assume a few gates can stop me." She said gleefully. "Les' go!" She said, cracking the reigns on her horse. The horse zoomed into town, neighing loudly. Clementine stared after her, a shocked look on her face.

Tripp pressed his fingers to the bridge of his nose, letting out a long sigh. The other woman- Francine- spoke up.

"When that day comes, I promise... I'll eat you first." She said with a smirk, turning and walking deeper into Prescott.

"I'm sorry about that." Tripp said, turning to Javier. "The name's Tripp."

"I'm Javier," He said, shaking hands with Tripp. Tripp turned to Clementine, frowning a bit.

"Your old man's lookin' for you." He said. Clementine let out a groan and rolled her eyes.

"Tell him i'm not here."

"Sorry Clem, no can do. I'm gonna let him know you're here." Tripp said. He turned, walking away into Prescott. Clementine's heart sank, but nevertheless, the turned, walking into Prescott.

Javier lagged behind, however.

Clementine paused, looking back at him. "Javi?"

"My family..." He said, looking down. The worried look on his face made Clementine's heart sink involuntarily.

"Look, if you've lasted this long, then i'm sure, that- y'know, they'll know what to do." Clementine said.

Javier inhaled sharply, nodding and straightening up. "Old man, huh? Is your dad here?"

"No, not my dad... More like 'guardian'. Now come on, I gotta see a guy about some bullets." Clementine said, turning and walking into a dome-shaped building. Javier followed her without a word.

When she was inside, Clementine scanned the area- to the right were some wooden stairs that led to the next floor. There were also a few wooden tables scattered around, and on the floor and walls were different colored mats and sheets of metal. Straight ahead was the booth where Conrad served drinks. Francine sat on the outside, playing a game of cards with Conrad, while a girl sat next to them, leaning back against the bar with her elbows propped on the countertop.

The girl was very pale in complexion, and she had long red hair, as well as deep, dusty blue eyes. She wore an oversized midnight blue hoodie, blue-gray jeans, and light gray shoes. She had one leg crossed over the other, and when Clementine and Javier entered, it appeared as though she was examining them closely.

For a moment, Clementine wondered if the girl was crazy. Just a few moments before, she'd riding on the back of a horse, hollering at the top of her lungs; now, anyone who looked at her wouldn't even guess that she was capable of such a thing.

Clementine looked away from the girl and to her left, feeling anger boil up inside of her. Inside of a little 'hut' built crudely from a sheet of metal propped on a wooden pole, a man named Eli sat, snoring. Eli had made a fatal mistake; he'd given Clementine a box full of duds.

"Hey, I gotta take care of something." Clementine said.

"Woah, wait, you're just gonna leave me hanging?" Javier asked. "What about me? What am I supposed to do?"

"I don't know, why don't you... make some friends?" Clementine suggested, a smirk on her face before she turned and walked around to Eli's hut.


	5. Making Friends

Javier watched Clementine leave, feeling dismayed. What was he supposed to do?

_ Make friends my ass._

Javier turned to the bar and saw the crazy girl from earlier watching him with a lazy look on her face. She almost looked as if she were drunk.

Javier swallowed and approached the bar, taking a seat between the girl and the woman.

"Oh, you're still here." The woman said lightly. "The name's Francine. This chump here's Conrad." She said, looking at Conrad with a smirk. Both Francine and Conrad looked to be African-American, with Conrad having a darker complexion than Francine. Conrad also appeared to be bald. He wore a tan shirt with a dark green vest over it, and he had gray stubble on his chin and jawline. Conrad's eyes were a bright icy blue.

Conrad looked at Javier, froening a bit. "Don't I know you from somewhere?"

_Uh oh._

"Javier. Javier Garcia! Shit, man. For what it's worth, I think you got screwed over on the gambling thing."

Javier let out a quiet sigh of relief, relaxing.

"Oh, so you're a gambler?" Francine said, peering at her selection of cards. Conrad lifted his, frowning.

"I'll raise you."

"Should I call, or should I fold?" Francine asked with a devious smirk. Javier leaned over, looking at her hand, and frowned.

"Fold."

Francine nodded and did as Javier said. Conrad glanced at Francine's hand and cursed, folding his own hand.

"Ha!" Francine cheered victoriously.

"Yeah, I let you win," Conrad said playfully.

"I'll get you a drink since you helped me win," Francine said. "Put it on my tab."

Conrad scoffed and bent down, picking up a glass and a bottle of some sort. Conrad poured the contents of the bottle- which were clear- into the glass and slid it over to Javier. From beside him, the girl snorted as Javier brought the mysterious liquid up to his lips and took a swig. Almost immediately, the taste repulsed him.

"Ugh! The stuff tastes like turpentine!" Javier exclaimed, earning a laugh from Conrad and Francine.

"Hey." A voice behind Javier said. He looked over his shoulder and saw a capped man with an eyepatch walk in.

"Hey, Kenny." Conrad greeted.

"Sup." The girl beside Javier said.

"Clementine's talkin' to Eli," Conrad said, angling his head down. Conrad and Francine seemed to regard Kenny with a great reverence.

"Alright, thank you," Kenny said with a nod, going into Eli's lair.

"Woah, that's her 'old man' that Tripp was talking about? He's kinda scary." Javier commented.

"That's because he is." Francine said with a shrug. "Don't hold it against him, once Kenny warms up to you, he's a real sweetheart."

Javier rose an eyebrow at that and took another swig of his drink.

"Hannah, can I get you anything?" Conrad asked.

"You're letting a kid drink?" Javier asked in surprise.

"Naw, we have water and juice here, too. For the kids."

Javier hummed and nodded at that. The girl beside Javier looked over her shoulder at Conrad.

"Y'all still have apple juice?" She asked.

Her voice was strange- it had a slight southern twang to it, but at the same time, it sounded like the average American accent.

"Sure do," Conrad said. He bent down again amd brandished a rather large green juice box with a small apple printed on it. The girl- Hannah- grinned widely and took it.

"Thanks man," She said. She plucked the packaged straw off the box, stabbed it into its slot, and sipped on it happily.

"Your name's Hannah?" Javier asked.

"Mmhmm." Hannah replied. She pulled away from her juice box, looking at Javier. "And your name's Javier, yeah?"

Javier nodded in response. "Alright, Hannah, can you tell me why on Earth you screamed like a banshee out there?"

"To save you," Hannah replied with a grin. "Maybe you didn't notice, but ms. snappy over there had just about given up." Hannah said, nodding at Clementine. Javier turned, looking back at Clementine, and saw that Kenny was lecturing her while Eli had gone back to snoring in his chair. Clementine wouldn't look Kenny in the eye- she only stared at the ground furiously. Her amber eyes flickered up, meeting Javier's gaze, and she narrowed her eyes at him. Javier looked back at Hannah.

"How could you tell?" He asked. Hannah shrugged, looking straight ahead.

"I saw the way her shoulders slumped, the way she hid her face behind her cap, and the way she began to relax completely. You were busy fighting, like any normal person would." Hannah said. "I've seen people give up many times before- their body language is always the biggest indicator of that."

Javier frowned at that. "How can she give up? What is she, twelve?"

"I don't know, I've never met her before." Hannah asked with a shrug. Javier scoffed.

"What about you? How old are you?"

Hannah blinked, tapping her index finger on her juicebox, before answering.

"Fourteen."

"Huh. My nephew's fourteen." Javier replied. "My niece is ten, I think."

Hannah hummed in response to Javier.

"You got any family?" Javier asked. Hannah looked up, a blank look coming onto her face.

"I... Don't know." She said awkwardly. "I haven't seen them in ages."

Javier frowned. "Ages? How long is that?"

"I haven't seen them since all of this started." Hannah replied flatly. Javier frowned at that.

"Your family, where are they?" Hannah asked, looking up at Javier.

"They're trapped in a junkyard. As soon as the herd clears i'm going to get them."

"And who all is in your family?"

"My niece, nephew and sister-in-law." He replied.

"Ah, so you have a brother, eh?"

"I don't know where he is... We got separated when this all started." Javier said with a sigh.

"Are you the big brother or the little brother?"

Javier gave Hannah a questioning look, but answered. "I was the little brother."

Hannah seemed satisfied by that. "I had a big brother, too." Javier grinned.

"Kenny, come on-"

"No! You're staying and i'm going to fix this mess you made!" Kenny snapped. Javier and Hannah both perked up, looking up at Kenny and Clementine. Clementine was now bristling, a furious look on her face, while Kenny gave off the same energy.

Clementine huffed angrily and pushed past Kenny, running blindly out of the bar. Kenny watched her, and then relaxed, sighing in defeat.

"I'd give her some space if I were you," Conrad said. "From on parent to another."

"I know." Kenny grumbled. "I just... Can't get her to listen." He said. Kenny went over to the bar and took a seat beside Francine, sighing again.

Hannah shifted and looked up. "Maybe she'll listen to someone her own age?"

Kenny perked up, looking at Hannah with a curious look. "Aren't you the girl that rides around on a horse all the time?"

"Not always," Hannah replied with a smirk. Kenny stared at her for a moment and then sighed.

"Do what you want, just don't come cryin' to me when she claws your eyes out."

Hannah snickered at that and slid off the barstool. "I'd like to see her try... Wish me luck!" She said cheerfully, disappearing in the direction Clementine went.

"Poor girl doesn't know what she's gettin' herself into." Kenny said with a scoff. Kenny turned to Javier.

"I'm Kenny, and you're Javier, right? I'm so sorry about her behavior, things have been hard for her lately. 'S been hard for both of us." Kenny said with a sigh. Javier gave Kenny a sympathetic look.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Javier said softly.

"I'll go with you to that junkyard tomorrow. You keep your van... We don't need it, really. Tripp can take us there once the herd clears out."

Javier nodded. "Sounds like a plan."


	6. Casual Conversation

_ Let's see... If I were upset, where would I go? I would go somewhere dark, to be alone... And... Ah. There you are._

Near an old rusted plane near the gates, Hannah spotted the capped girl- whose name was Clementine if she remembered correctly- was sitting against one of the metal walls in Prescott, her knees up. Her arms were crossed over her knees, and she was looking down, her cap hiding her face.

Clementine was African-american with a slightly lighter complexion than most. She was wearing a bluish-purple bubble jacket, along with a red scarf with faded white stripes, gray pants, and black boots. Her hat was white and blue, with brown speckles staining the white part of it.

Hannah didn't want to think about what the brown speckles were.

Hannah walked around the rusted plane, raising an eyebrow at it, and up to Clementine, looking down at her with a smile. "Hey." She said. Clementine bristled and looked up, her eyes wide. When she saw Hannah, she frowned and looked away.

"Did Kenny send you?" She asked.

"Nope, I sent myself. Kenny certainly didn't try to stop me, though."

"Of course he didn't..." Clementine mumbled. "Who are you, anyways?"

"I'm Hannah." Hannah said, sitting down in front of Clementine. Clementine rose an eyebrow at her. "I'm not gonna leave until I make you smile, alright? This world is pretty crappy, I get it... So bear with me, i'll try to make it less crappy."

Clementine sighed and readjusted her legs so that she was sitting criss-cross. "Fine." She grumbled.

"I'll start off with some normal conversation," Hannah said. "What did you think of my performance earlier?"

Clementine scoffed, perking up a bit. "I think you're crazy. I mean, what's up with the 'yee-haw' shit?"

"It's the call of my people of course," Hannah said.

"What are you, a cowboy?"

"Obviously." Hannah said with a proud grin. Clementine snorted at that, and Hannah could almost swear she saw the corner of her lips twitch upwards.

_ Good, i'm making progress._

"Where are you from, Hannah?" Clementine asked. She seemed to be more relaxed now that she knew that Hannah didn't come to pester her about the argument she'd had with Kenny. Hannah couldn't help but to feel pleased that she was making her more comfortable.

"Texas. That's where all cowboys are from," Hannah said with a smirk. Clementine rose an eyebrow and her lips turned upward at that statement. "In fact, that's where I found my trusty steed, Shade." Hannah stood up and turned, whistling loudly. A few moments later, the sound of hooves against the ground could be heard, and a black Clydesdale horse with a white star shape on his forehead came trotting around the corner, snorting. Clementine's eyes widened in amazement and she stood up also, bristling a bit.

"Relax, he won't hurt you," Hannah said, putting a hand on his nose. "You wanna pet him?"

"Yes." Clementine answered almost immediately. Hannah took a step back, gesturing to Shade's nose. Clementine reached out nervously, trembling a little, and brushed her hand against the stallion's nose. He snorted, causing Clementine to momentarily jerk back, but then she settled her palm back onto his nose.

"He's a sweetheart," Hannah said, reaching up and gently stroking his mane. Clementine seemed entranced by Shade's soft nose. Shade snorted and nudged her shoulder. "Hey, I think he likes you."

Shade nickered softly, nudging Clementine again. "What's he doing?" She asked, tensing up again.

"Relax," Hannah said gently. "That just means he wants you to ride him."

"What? Me? I've never ridden a horse before!"

"Well, it's never too late to learn," Hannah said cheerfully. She turned to Shade. "Down, boy."

Shade obeyed Hannah, bending his front legs down and lowering his head. "Come on now, I don't have to tell you how to mount a horse, do I?" Hannah asked, looking at Clementine.

"No, of course not." Clementine said, holding her head up proudly. She went around to Shade's side and hopped onto the horse's back. "See? Easy-"

Clementine yelped when Shade stood up abruptly, holding onto his neck tightly. Hannah grinned and snickered at her. Clementine's cheeks became dusted red.

"Shut up." She said, slowly sitting up. She tested her balance, a nervous look on her face.

"It's alright, really," Hannah said. She whistled, causing Shade's ears to stand up straight. "Shade, follow." She said, walking away from the rusted plane.

"What, what're- where are we going?!" Clementine asked.

"Relax, we're going slow. We're just talking a walk around Prescott. We're getting to know each other," Hannah said lightly, giving Clementine a warm smile. Clementine seemed too busy focusing on not losing her balance to notice. "I usually have a saddle on him, but I wasn't planning on going back out tonight, so I took it off of him."

"How long have you had him?" Clementine asked, slowly getting more comfortable. Hannah walked a few steps ahead of Shade, leading them down a dirt road. There were metal buildings and concrete buildings erected on either side of her; from what Hannah understood, most of the metal buildings had been built after the corpses came back to life.

"I found him when he was a foal, Not long after all of this started." Hannah said. "It's a shame, really. Poor thing was all alone."

"Where you with anyone in the beginning?" Clementine asked.

"Not really... I just had a little horse following me around from store to store. Eventually, he got big enough to where he could carry me. So, I taught myself how to ride."

"So you've never been in a group before?" Clementine asked, raising an eyebrow at Hannah.

"Well, I never said _that_... I was alone for the first few months of this, that's all. What about you?"

"I was with a group at the start of this. Kenny was a part of that group." Clementine said, looking down. There was now a sad look on her face.

"Ah, by the look on your face, i'm guessing it didn't go well. I won't pry." Hannah said with a shrug. "That man, Javier? How'd you meet him?" Hannah asked.

"Uhhh... I pointed a shutgun at his back." Clementine said bluntly.

"Why's that?"

"He and this other guy were inside of a truck, and I was trying to get the truck, but it ended up crashing in a ditch." Clementine said, sounding defeated. "He said he had a van, and I was gonna take him to the junkyard in exchange for it, but Kenny won't allow that."

"Why do you want a car so badly?" Hannah asked.

"I want to get out of this place." Clementine said stiffly. Hannah looked up at her, raising an eyebrow, and shrugged.

"Okay. And What about Kenny?"

"He wants us to stay since it's safer here." She said with a sigh. Hannah hummed.

"I think it's about time for me to settle down... I've been all around the U.S by this point, and I'm tired. I'm... Retiring." Hannah said decisively.

"What? You can't retire, you don't even have a job." Clementine said, a hint of amusement in her voice.

"Can to. I'm a retired traveller," Hannah replied with a grin.

"We're the same age, I think..."

"Then you should retire too," Hannah said playfully.

"Retire from what?" Clementine asked.

"Retire from riding the horse in one direction. We're circling back around to the plane," Hannah said, stopping. Shade stopped as well, and when Hannah turned around, heading back down the dirt road, Shade turned, following Hannah. Clementine scoffed.

"Real funny." She said flatly.

"I know, i'm simply hilarious." Hannah replied, glancing back and meeting Clementine's amber eyes. Clementine rolled her eyes, but on her face, there was a smile.

Mission accomplished. The lights inside of the buildings were beginning to go out, signalling that people were beginning to turn in for the night.

"I think I might follow them to the junkyard." Hannah said suddenly. Clementine looked at Hannah raising an eyebrow.

"Why? You won't get anything out of it."

"I haven't seen a functional family in ages," Hannah replied. "I just thought it would be nice to see them reunite and help them out, y'know?"

Clementine hummed in response, looking up. "I guess that's _one_ way of looking at it. The last functional family I saw was Kenny's." She said, shaking her head and looking away. "They're gone now."

Hannah looked up at Clementine with a sympathetic look on her face. "I'm guessing you were close to his family?"

"I was. His wife and son were both very nice... I miss them." She said sadly. Hannah faltered for a moment, her lips twitching. However, she kept her face neutral.

"I'm sorry about that."

"It's just... I've seen so many groups, people as close as family, fall apart... It's awful every time." Clementine said. Hannah looked up, and to her dismay, she saw Clementine doing it again- looking down, hiding her face, allowing her shoulders to sag, hunching over...

_ I can't let anyone else give up._

"Hey," Hannah said softly. "It doesn't have to be like that with you and Kenny. You two really care about each other, I can tell... Just talk to each other. Whatever's the matter, whatever it is, i'm sure you'll get through it."

Clementine frowned a bit, pursing her lips. "I hope you're right." She murmured.

* * *

**(A/N)- apologies if you find the more dialogue-filled chapters boring, i'll be getting back into the main plot in chapter seven :)**


	7. Reunion

"I don't know about this..."

"Aw, c'mon, it'll be fine! You'll need all the help you can get, won't you? I'll be right behind you, don't worry." Hannah said, giving Javier a reassuring smile.

Javier didn't know how he felt about letting someone who was potentially crazy tag along with him, but then again, Hannah wasn't the one who'd pointed the gun at him. Besides, it wasn't like Javier was related to her, anyways- he had no right to tell her what to do.

"C'mon, we ain't got all day." Kenny spoke up from beside Javier. "Tripp's waitin' on us outside." Javier gave Hannah one last look before turning away. Kenny watched her for a bit longer and rose an eyebrow before turning and exiting Prescott. By now, the herd had cleared up, giving the black car in front of the gates easy access to the road. The sun was rising, casting a golden hue over the land. It was a pleasantly cool morning, with still air and the sound of birds in the distance.

"I'll be honest, I didn't expect to see Clementine getting along with that girl so well. I haven't seen her warm up to anyone so quickly in... Ages. Again, I apologize for the way she treated you last night."

Javier shrugged, going through the gates and to the car outside. "I won't hold it against her. She's just a kid."

"Yeah, but she's old enough to know better. I swear, that girl's gonna get herself killed one of these days..." Kenny grumbled, getting into the passenger side of the car. Tripp was waiting in the car already. Javier cast one last look behind him at Hannah and saw that she was saying something to Clementine. She'd mounted her horse, holding the reigns loosely. Then, both she and Clementine looked up at Javier.

"You be careful." Javier said to Hannah before getting into the car.

* * *

After driving for about half an hour, Tripp pulled the car up to the junkyard. Javier was quick to get out of the car, scanning the area with narrowed eyes.

"Mariana?! Gabriel?!" He called out. To his right, a group of muertos was banging on a large abandoned eighteen wheeler, and inside, he could see Kate staring down at them with wide, frightened eyes. Hannah and Shade trotted past Javier, and Hannah pulled on the reigns of Shade, sliding off of the horse and brandishing a knife. She, along with Kenny and Tripp, advanced on the muertos banging on the eighteen wheeler.

"Javi?"

Javier perked up and looked down the road. Just outside of the junkyard was an abandoned white car, and in front of it, Mariana crouched down, a hesitant look on her face. When she got a good look at Javier, however, relief washed over her face.

"Javi!" She cried again, bolting out from her hiding spot. She ran straight over to Javier, embracing him tightly. Javier smiled and hugged his niece back, breathing a sigh of relief.

"I knew you were a smart girl." Javier praised.

"You told me where to hide, I just listened to what you said!" Mariana said, pulling away from Javier. Mariana noticed the large horse behind Javier, and then turned to look at the muertos gathered around the eighteen wheeler.

"Muertos..." Mariana breathed, a fearful look coming onto her face.

"Stay back." Javier instructed, drawing a crowbar and approaching a muerto was was coming up on Kenny's left. Javier swung the crowbar at the muerto, internally cringing when the putrid smell of the rotting flesh wafted over to him. The door of the eighteen wheeler opened and slammed on the last muerto's head, killing it. It fell to the ground when Kate opened the door and hopped out, stumbling a bit. Javier was quick to step forward and catch her. Gabriel hopped out after her, immediately making a beeline towards Mariana.

"Woah, I got you," Javier said gently to Kate, helping her stand up straight.

"I wanted to go after you, I swear I did..." He began, sniffling while he hugged Mariana. Mariana smiled and giggled.

"You don't have to snot all over my shirt about it." Mariana said, smiling at Gabriel.

"You happy to see me, or is that just a gun?" Kate asked breathlessly. Javier couldn't help but to frown at that question.

"C'mon Kate, knock it off." He said sternly, pulling away from Kate. A disappointed look came onto her face. Javier turned, spotting the van, and sighed. There was smoke coming from the engine- it had somehow been totalled. Hannah was mounting Shade, a happy smile on her face.

"Woah, that's so cool!" Gabriel said, looking up at the horse in awe. Hannah grinned down at Gabriel.

"You bet it is. Shade here is a real sweetheart," She said. "You can pet him if you'd like. He only kicks walkers, don't worry."

"Walkers?" Gabriel echoed in confusion.

Shade's head perked up, and he snorted, shaking his head.

"Yeah. The dead guys."

"We always called them muertos." Mariana replied.

"Muertos? That, uh... Means dead, right?"

"It does. How'd you know?" Javier asked, walking over to Hannah.

"Muertos? That don't sound English. Where are y'all from?" Kenny asked, following Javier.

"My family's from Cuba." Javier replied with a smirk.

"Huh. Cool." Kenny said with a satisfied look on his face. Shade suddenly snorted loudly, stamping his hooves, and abruptly turned, jerking Hannah back.

"Woah-"

At the same time, a gunshot rang out, going straight through Hannah's shoulder. Hannah cried out in pain, losing her balance on Shade and slipping, hitting the ground hard on her right arm.

"SHIT!" Tripp exclaimed, diving for cover behind an oil can. Shade ducked down, grabbing Hannah by the hood and dragging her further into the junkyard, disappearing behind a pile of junk.

Unfortunately, this left everyone else exposed; another gunshot rang out, hitting a stunned Kate in the abdomen. She screamed in pain as Javier grabbed her and dragged her into cover. Gabriel ushered Mariana into a safe spot too, ducking down beside her. Javier flinched when more gunshots rang out.

"We need to get back to Prescott! Javi, you get your family back! I'll hold these bastards off!" Kenny snapped.

"What!? That's suicide!"

"Don't worry, he has backup." A voice behind them said. Javier looked over his shoulder and saw Hannah crawling around the corner, careful to stay close to the piles of junk. The left side of her hoodie was beginning to become soaked with blood, and she was even more pale now than she was just a few seconds ago.

"But you're injured!"

"I don't care! Move!" Hannah snapped. Javier desperately wanted to take her back to safety, but he knew he had no other choice but to look out for his own family first. Kenny stood up, taking aim and shooting at their attackers. More gunshots from the treeline rang out, causing Kenny to duck. Hannah assumed Kenny's previous position and began shooting at their attackers.

"NOW!" Tripp yelled, racing towards their car. Javier pulled kate up earning a cry of pain from her, and followed suit, with Gabriel and Mariana following closely behind. Now, both Hannah and Kenny were shooting at their enemies, preventing them from shooting back at them. Once they were all in the car, Tripp switched gears into the reverse and slammed on the gas, driving away. Then, he spun the wheel, turning them around. He quickly shifted away from reverse and slammed on the gas again, speeding away as fast as possible. Javier cast one last look back, only to feel his heart sink when he saw a grenade being tossed over to Kenny and and Hannah.


	8. Shot By a Freak With a Brand

Kenny woke with a start, coughing. His lungs and eyes stung, and his head was throbbing with pain. He heard the groan of a walker and sat up with a start. Hannah was quick to gun it down.

"Hey," She said, noticing that Kenny was now awake. "You took a pretty hard hit with that bomb." She said, kneeling down beside Kenny. Kenny turned his head away, coughing again.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Yeah," Hannah said, standing back up. "What about you?"

"I'll be fine." Kenny replied. "Just need to get my bearings..."

Hannah hummed in response. She looked down the path and whistled. Shade came trotting around the corner, his mane flowing slightly, and stopped in front of her. Kenny sighed and got to his feet, looking out at the treeline, his eye narrowed.

"They're gone," Hannah said, answering Kenny's unspoken question. "For now, anyways." She said, gently stroking her horse's snout. Kenny's eye narrowed and he hummed. Something about this ambush felt off, but he couldn't quite place a finger on why.

A walker stumbled out of the forest, his arms outstretched. Kenny frowned and drew his pistol, shooting it in the head before it could get too close. Hannah looked over, raising an eyebrow as Kenny walked over to the walker and bent down, examining it. He was wearing a dark gray muscle shirt along with black jeans. On the left side of his neck was what appeared to be a brand- a circle, with a seven and a six inside of it.

"Shit... I've seen that mark before." Kenny said. Hannah walked over, leading Shade by the reigns.

"What mark?" Hannah asked. Kenny nodded at the walker's throat. Hannah looked at it, and frowned.

"Ow..." She mumbled.

"That's the mark of The New Frontier." Kenny said, feeling anger boil up inside of him.

"How do you know?" Hannah asked. Kenny couldn't tell her the truth- he had to make something up.

"Clem and I, we were their prisoners at one point." He said. Hannah's nose wrinkled up at that and she frowned.

"Did you escape?"

Kenny stood up straight, raising an eyebrow at her. "No. We died." He said flatly. Hannah stared at him blankly, and then a look of realization crossed over her face and she cleared her throat awkwardly, looking away.

"Right. Yeah. So... What exactly are we supposed to do about that?" Hannah asked, kicking the walker.

"Not much we really can do, I suppose. See, this is why I don't want her going out alone..." Kenny said, shaking his head with a frown. "C'mon, we oughta get back."

Hannah nodded in agreement. "Do you want to ride Shade?"

Kenny scoffed. "Naw, i'm too old to be ridin' horses. Thanks for the offer, though." He said. Hannah nodded and placed her foot on the tread cover of her saddle, grimacing a bit, and then hoisted herself onto Shade's saddle, her jaw clenched. Kenny rose an eyebrow at her.

"You sure you're okay?"

"Well, I got shot in the shoulder," Hannah said. "Eleanor will have to patch me up when we get back to Prescott." Hannah said. She cracked her reigns and whistled, prompting Shade to start walking down the road. Kenny followed.

"What were you doin' with Clem last night?" Kenny asked.

"Talking."

"I know that, smart-ass." Kenny said indignantly, earning a snicker from Hannah. "I mean, why was she riding your horse?" Hannah shrugged, and then grimaced a bit.

"I thought it might help her relax." She replied with a shrug. "Since we're both teenagers, I thought I might know how to cheer her up. Y'know, from one teenager to another I guess."

Kenny huffed. "Well... I appreciate it. I haven't seen her smile in ages." Kenny said sincerely. Hannah nodded and looked forward.

"No problem."

* * *

When they got back to Prescott, Kenny saw that Tripp was on watch, and beside him, Clementine was pacing around anxiously. It appeared as if Tripp was ignoring her nervous antics.

When Kenny and Hannah came into view, a relieved look crossed onto her face, and she hurried down. She burst through the gates, running towards Kenny.

"Kenny!" She exclaimed, hugging him tightly.

Kenny huffed in surprise and gently hugged her back, smirking. "Easy, now," Kenny said. Hannah smiled sincerely down at them before going through the gates.

"What took you so long?" Clementine asked, pulling away from Kenny.

"I'll tell you once we get inside." Kenny said. Clementine nodded and turned, walking through the gates and back into Prescott. Kenny followed closely behind.

"Glad to see you made it back in one piece!" Tripp called down to Kenny.

Hannah scoffed from ahead of them. "Speak for yourself!" She said,, hopping down from Shade. She sucked in a breath, frowning, and put a hand on her shoulder. Kenny closed the gates to Prescott while Clementine looked over at Hannah.

"Oooh... What happened to you?" Clementine asked, raising an eyebrow at Hannah.

"I got shot by some freak with a brand." Hannah replied with a scowl. At that, Clementine paled and her eyes went a bit wide. Her face fell at that, and she looked at Kenny with a pleading look, as if begging him to say, 'No, she's just joking.'

Kenny sighed and nodded. "Yeah... They attacked us and shot Kate and Hannah. Speaking of which, where is she?" Kenny asked.

"Eleanor's patching her up." Clementine replied softly, crossing her arms and looking away. Kenny sighed.

"Clem-"

Clementine looked up at Kenny, her eyes glistening. Kenny's heart sank at that, and he himself felt as if a wound was reopening. "It ain't your fault-" Kenny tried.

"I don't want to talk about this right now." Clementine said stiffly, looking away. Kenny sighed, rubbing the side of his face with a hand.

"Alright... Yeah. I understand." He said with a nod. "Just... I'm here if you need me, okay? We're family. You don't have to go through this alone."

Clementine glanced at him and and nodded. "I'm... I need some alone time." She said softly. Kenny nodded.

"I understand, darlin'." He said softly. Clementine cast one last look at Kenny before turning and walking away. She went to her usual hiding place- behind the old plane that stood near the gates of Prescott. Kenny shook his head and went straight down the dirt path. Eleanor's station should be straight ahead, in front of a white EMS car.

Kenny walked down the road, and as he did, he saw people socializing in front of buildings. It was almost as if the apocalypse had never happened. For a moment, it felt like a normal day in a normal town.

Kenny was drawn out of his thoughts when an agonized scream of pain rang out ahead of him. He involuntarily flinched and looked up, spotting Eleanor working on Kate. Javier was holding her hand, trying to offer support, while Gabriel and Mariana stood by, watching fearfully. Mariana clung to her brother and buried her face into his chest when Kate screamed, letting out a quiet sob. Kenny's heart broke when he saw that.

Hannah stood next to Gabriel, watching with a horrified look on her face. Kenny saw her lips purse, and then she backed away slowly, turning and disappearing behind the truck. He saw Eleanor with white gloves and a pair of medical tweezers gently probing Kate's wound, and then she withdrew the tweezers. A golden bullet covered in blood gleamed in the moonlight.

"I still need to patch her up!" Eleanor exclaimed. A dismayed look crossed over Javier's features. Eleanor looked up, spotting Kenny.

"Kenny, get over here. I need your help."

Kenny internally groaned in protest and his shoulders sagged, but he didn't voice it. He hurried over, kneeling down on Kate's right side.

"What do you need?" He asked.

"I need you to hold her shoulders down." Eleanor instructed. Kenny nodded and obeyed, carefully placing his hands on the woman's shoulders. Eleanor nodded at Javier, who carefully pulled Kate's wound open again, causing her to let out a whimper of pain. Eleanor took a deep breath and went back to the wound, causing Kate to let out a loud scream again. From the corner of Kenny's eye, he saw Hannah getting Gabriel and Mariana's attention. He couldn't hear what was being said, but whatever it was made the three kids leave with Hannah leading the way.


	9. The Fall of Prescott

Kate was passed on out the cot, with her abdomen bandaged. Eleanor took the bloody gloves off and tossed them into a gray trashcan nearby, a frustrated look on her face.

"What's the status, doc?" Kenny asked from his seat.

"She's stable, for now... She's still bleeding inside though, and i'm worried that she might become septic."

Javier's heart sank at that. He shook his head, standing up. "I'm... Gonna go talk to Gabe and Mari." He said quietly. Eleanor sighed and nodded while Kenny slumped forward, hanging his head.

Javier turned, looking towards the gate of Prescott. Near the plane, he saw Clementine sitting with her face hidden and her knees against her chest. In front of the bar that they went to yesterday, Javier saw that Hannah, and Gabriel were looking up at Mariana with broad smiles. Mariana was riding on Shade, a huge grin on her face.

For a moment, Javier's heart stopped, but when he saw how calm Shade and Hannah were, he relaxed. He couldn't help but to feel grateful towards Hannah for taking Gabriel and Mariana out of that situation- no kid should see their step-mother in such pain.

Javier walked over to the kids, a light smile on his face. "Hey, kids. You having fun with the horse?" Javier asked. Shade turned his head towards Javier, his ears up, and then snorted a bit. Javier smiled and scratched his nose gently.

"Yeah. Hannah's teaching us how to ride!" Mariana said excitedly.

"You be sure to tell her thank you." Javier said. Mariana nodded and looked at Hannah.

"Thanks for teaching me how to ride!" She said cheerfully. Hanna blinked in surprise and her cheeks became dusted lightly with pink.

"Yeah, sure. No problem." She said with a bashful smile. Gabriel turned, looking up at Javier with a worried look.

"How's Kate?" He asked. Almost immediately, Javier had the attention of the three kids. Javier sighed, looking down and shaking his head.

"She's stable, but Eleanor says she's still got some internal bleeding. She thinks Kate might get an infection."

Mariana's face fell at that and she looked down. "How do we fix that?" She asked.

"Well, first, we would need medicine, but something tells me that this place doesn't have much of that." Javier said. He looked at Hannah. "Do you know?"

"Sorry, they ran out just a few days ago." Hannah said, a sympathetic look on her face. "I... Could go find some?"

Javier shook his head at that. "I couldn't ask a kid to do that for us. And besides, you're injured, too."

"It's fine, really," Hannah said. "It stopped bleeding not that long ago."

"That's... Not good. Come on, Hannah, you should go see Eleanor." Javier insisted. Hannah sighed in defeat and pulled her hood over her shoulders, revealing a red long-sleeved shirt with a patch of darker red over her shoulder.

"Fine. Sorry, squirt, party's over." Hannah said to Mariana. Mariana groaned in protest, but obeyed, and slid off of Shade's back carefully. Hannah took Shade's leads and led him away, heading over to Eleanor. Javier watched her for a moment, and then looked at the sky. The sun was now setting, casting a pink glow over the sky above them. The air was beginning to grow chilly once again.

"I'll ask Tripp where we can sleep tonight." Javier said.

"What should we do?" Mariana asked.

"Make friends!" Javier replied gleefully. Mariana's eyes darted over to Clementine, and then back to Javier.

"She scares me." Mariana said quietly.

Javier scoffed. "Hey, she's nice to other kids, at least. Come on, it'll be fine. If you don't wanna talk to other people, you could always just play your card games."

Mariana looked at Gabriel expectantly, who reached into his back pocket and pulled out a deck of cards. Javier turned away and looked back up at the sky as he headed towards the gates. The sun was setting fast; it would be nighttime soon.

To the right of the gates were a set of black metal stairs that led to the top, where Tripp and Conrad stood, keeping watch. Javier tested the stairs, raising an eyebrow and scrunching his face up a bit. They didn't seem very stable, but it was the only way to get to the top of the gate.

Javier wasted no time in going up the stairs, sidling up beside Tripp. The night had come much sooner than he'd expected, and by now, the sun had gone down entirely. Javier was about to open his mouth to speak, when in front of the gates, a pair of headlights turned on, and in the distance, the low rumble of a truck could be heard.

"What's going on?" Javier asked. Beside Javier, Clementine went up the stairs and to the top of the gate, peering out. She frowned when she saw an eighteen wheeler pulling up to the gates.

"It's the freaks that brand themselves. They call themselves 'The New Frontier.'" Tripp replied, scowling down at the truck. The doors opened, and a few men stepped out. Javier recognized them immediately and he felt anger boil up inside of him. Those were the men who'd attacked him!

"You have something that belongs to us!" The man with a beanie said, nodding at a bald man with a black beard. He had what Javier could only describe as crazed eyes. "Badger here says you attacked his men!"

Tripp's eyes narrowed while Javier bristled dangerous. "You shot my sister and an innocent girl!" He retorted.

"How many of my friends died because of you, huh?!" Badger snapped, stepping forward with a deadly glare. "What I want is for my dead friends to come back... But that ain't gonna happen."

"This doesn't have to turn nasty, now," The man with the beanie said. "He needs to come down and accept his punishment. Men have gotta have laws; otherwise, we're no better than the animals."

"You're crazy if you think i'm going anywhere with you." Javier spat. Badger and the other man exchanged a glance and Badger nodded at the other man.

"Looks like our friend needs a little encouragement," He said, turning to nod at some of the other people with them. A woman with long black hair and sunglasses nodded and went around the truck, then came back, pushing Francine in front of her. Conrad cried out his wife's name in horror, his eyes wide. Meanwhile, Francine looked terrified as another person wearing a gray bandana and sunglasses drew out a redclipper. The woman grabbed Francine's hand, and jerked it forward, allowing the man easy access to her fingers.

The man didn't hesitate; he was quick to close the clippers around Francine's ring fingers. Javier's heart skipped a beat as blood spurted out of the wound and as the finger fell to the ground. Francine screamed in pain, grimacing and shutting her eyes tightly.

"Javi, man, you gotta go down there. You gotta save my Francine," Conrad pleaded, going around Tripp to stand next to Javier. He gripped a black rifle firmly, ready to shoot if he needed to. Tripp appeared to wield the same type of rifle.

"No one's going down there!" Tripp said firmly.

"Come on, man, they'll kill her!" Conrad shot back. "Please, Javi, just go."

"We should start shooting." Clementine said with a nod.

Would Javier surrender, abandoning his family to save Conrad's wife, or would he stay and shoot, potentially getting everyone else killed at the same time? The answer was painfully clear to Javier.

"Wait, stop! I'm coming down!" Javier said. Badger smirked at this while Clementine and Tripp gave Javier shocked looks. Javier turned and hurried down the stairs, and then went through the gates, his hands up in surrender.

"Glad we could settle this peacefully." The man in the beanie said. "Now-"

Before he could finish his sentence however, a gunshot rang out and hit one Badger's comrades square in the forehead. Badger cursed loudly while Javier lunged forward, punching someone, while another gunshot rang out above him, gunning down another member of the New Frontier.

"JAVI, GET INSIDE! NOW!" Javier heard Clementine bark out. He didn't need to be told twice- they were still caught off guard. He turned, bolting through the gates. Francine tried to run away, only to be shot through the head.

"FRANCINE!" Conrad cried out. Javier slammed the gates shut and spotted Gabriel and Mariana with wide eyes.

"Gabriel! Mariana! Go get Kate and Eleanor, and tell them to get ready to leave just in case!" Javier said, rushing away from the gates.

"Ram the fucking gates!" Badger ordered to the driver of the truck. Javier felt his blood run cold at this command.

"We don't have the go ahead!" Someone protested.

"No. Fuck that. Fuck the go-ahead. Ram the fucking gate!" Badger snapped. The truck began to back up. Tripp cursed and began shooting at the men frantically. The engine of the truck roared angrily and the truck lunged forward, bursting through the gates. Javier cursed and jumped out of the way. He fell to the ground as the truck swerved and tipped over, falling onto its side. the top of the cage it was carrying opened, and Javier's heart sank when muertos crawled out, growling hungrily. A silver tear gas grenade was tossed over the wall and landed near him.

Just then, a rotting muerto crawled on top of him, causing Javier to curse. He reacted quickly, grabbing its shoulders and pushing it away from him. A gunshot went off and the bullet entered the muerto's head, killing it. Javier pushed it off of him and got to his feet quickly, coughing as the chemicals from the grenade entered his lungs.

Through the fog of chemicals, Javier could see Tripp approaching him, coughing. "Fuckin' tear gas!" Tripp exclaimed.

"My family-" Javier began, only to break off into a fit of coughing.

"Go! I'll hold these assholes off!" Tripp said. Javier nodded once, grateful, and turned, coughing. He drew his gun out, his eyes beginning to sting. There was a combination of both smoke and deadly chemicals in the air, and if they didn't get out of there soon, there was no telling what would happen.

As Javier walked deeper into Prescott, he heard the sound of a loud whinny. He looked over and saw Shade, panicking and stamping his hooves furiously. Javier whistled, catching the horse's attention.

"Shade! Can you find Gabe?" Javier asked.

_Please understand what i'm asking..._

The horse snorted and jerked his head right and turned, running into Prescott. To Javier's left, a woman was struggling with a muerto. Javier took aim and shot it in the head.

A few moments later, Shade came trotting back and went behind Javier, nudging him forward. Javier coughed and looked up, seeing a muerto limping towards him. He shot it down, revealing Gabriel, Mariana, Kate and Eleanor.

"This way!" Eleanor called. Eleanor and Gabriel were supporting Kate as they trudged through the chaos.

"Where are we heading?!"

"To the cars!" Eleanor replied. Javier looked up, and he saw it- two large black cars. Shade snorted and neighed loudly, then trotted off into the chaos.

_ Good luck.  
_

When they got to the car, Eleanor swung the door open and helped Kate lie down inside. Mariana and Gabriel climbed into the backseat while Javier climbed in beside Kate, slamming the car door shut. In the car in front of them, Tripp, Kenny and Conrad suddenly appeared, with Tripp taking the driver's seat. Conrad slipped into the passenger seat, slamming his door shut. Kenny eyed the land nervously, presumably searching for Clementine.

"YEEE HAW!" Javier heard a familiar voice cry through the car. He looked the window and saw Hannah, Shade and Clementine zoom past and through the now broken gates of Prescott. Clementine had a terrified look on her face, with one hand on her hat and the other wrapped tightly around Hannah, holding on for dear life. Javier heard the sound of a car door closing, and he assumed that Kenny had gotten into the car. The engines revved, and Javier felt the car jerk forward.

Just like that, they were all speeding out of Prescott and onto the road.

* * *

**(A/N)- Thanks to everyone who's read this far. Reviews and constructive criticism is welcomed and appreciated!**


	10. Where To?

Hannah pulled on the leads of Shade, slowing the horse down. The two black cars had slowed down to keep in pace with them, and now that Shade was stopping, the cars were slowing to a stop, also.

They were back out on the road again, with dense forestry on either side. The road seemed as if it could go on for miles ahead of them.

Behind her, Clementine was frozen. She had an arm wrapped around Hannah's stomach tightly and one shielding her face.

"Uh, Clem? We've stopped." Hannah said, looking over her shoulder with a smirk. Clementine slowly lowered her arm, her face paled and her eyes wide. She locked eyes with Hannah for a few moments before looking away, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment.

"Do... Do you have to shout like that?" She asked, hopping off of Shade's back.

Hannah grinned down at Clementine. "Sure do." She replied. Clementine rolled her eyes, groaning in response.

Ahead of them, the car doors opened almost simultaneously. Gabriel, Mariana, and Kate stayed inside the car, but everyone else stepped out. Clementine hurried over to Kenny and hugged him tightly, a relieved look on her face. Hannah smirked and looked down at the lump of clothing draped over her right arm. It was her hoodie. She held it up, inspecting it, and frowned.

The left shoulder now had a hole in it, along with a blood stain. She sighed in disappointment. The sentimental value of the hoodie was too much for her to just leave it; she would have to wash it and sew it back up. Hannah looked up and saw Kenny with a grin, his hands on his hips, while Clementine was covering her face in embarrassment.

"I didn't scream!" She said.

"I heard you scream!" Kenny insisted. Hannah felt herself smile at that. She hopped off of Shade.

"Stay here, boy," Hannah said. Shade snorted and bent his head down, grazing on the grass. She smiled at the stallion before turning and joining the group gathered around the cars. Conrad was sitting hunched over, sniffling. Javier and Tripp were both looking down at him sadly, while Clementine and Kenny were having their own conversation not far away.

"Alright, guys, I don't want to alarm anyone, but those people who attacked us are still out there and on top of that Kate needs medical attention." Hannah said.

"What I want is to find the motherfuckers that killed Francine!" Conrad snapped. Hannah frowned sympathetically at him.

"I get that, but right now, we need to get help for Kate. May I suggest a place called Richmond? They've got food, walls, and a hospital." Hannah said. Conrad stood to his feet, glaring at Javier.

"It's his fault!" He said, stomping up to Javier. "Because he's the one who provoked them!" He snapped, jabbing his finger into javier's chest.

"It's no-one's fault but theirs." Tripp said, raising his voice so that he could be heard. Hannah watched, her eyes wide. Conrad and Javier stared at each other for a few tense moments before Conrad scoffed and turned away.

"You're right." He said with a sigh. "Fuck... Richmond? I heard of that place before."

"You know where it is?" Hannah asked. Tripp looked at her and nodded.

"Yeah, people talk about different settlements all the time." He said.

"Fuck it... Let's go." Conrad said with a nod. Hannah looked back at Shade, seeing that the horse was now lying down and sleeping. She sighed.

"You guys go ahead," Hannah said. Javier frowned at Hannah.

"You sure? You're just a kid." Javier said, concern in his voice. Hannah's jaw clenched at that.

"I'll be fine," She said stiffly. "Besides, Shade and I are both tired." She added. Javier's eyes flickered over to the horse, then back to Hannah.

"I'll catch up with you guys, I promise. Go get Kate to Richmond. Please." Hannah pleaded.

"Yes, ma'am," Tripp said with a nod. "C'mon, let's get goin'." Tripp said. He leaned his head into the other car, saying a few brief words to them before getting into his car. Conrad, Clementine, and Kenny followed suit. Javier lagged behind, watching them, and then turned to Hannah.

"You have a weapon?" He asked. Hannah frowned.

"No, I lost mine."

Javier frowned and reached over his back, pulling his crowbar out. "Here. You need to be able to defend yourself. Since I have a gun, I figure you might need this more than I do." Javier said. Hannah smiled gratefully at Javier, taking the crowbar. She tested its weight in her hands, peering at it curiously. "You be safe out here, you hear?" Javier asked.

"I plan on it," Hannah said. "Thank you, Javi."

* * *

_"Come on, Hannah! You can do better than that!" Annabell called out with an encouraging smile on her face. Hannah huffed, staring at the target with a scowl. "I believe in you!"_

_ "I'm too shaky to hold the gun steady." Hannah said, frustration rising up inside of her. Annabell rose an eyebrow at her. _

_ "Come on, cowgirl, it's alright. Can you try one more time? For me?" She asked. Hannah inhaled slowly, and then exhaled. Beside her, a young stallion nickered in what sounded like amusement._

_ "Oh, shut up," Hannah huffed, taking aim. Annabell had carved a target into the dead tree trunk in front of her. Hannah took another deep breath, taking aim. She tried to stiffen her arms up, but they still trembled. _

This must be connected to the reason I was in the hospital, right?

_A gunshot rang out, and a bullet hit the side of the target, sending wooden chunks flying out of the tree. Hannah sighed in agitation, lowering the gun. Annabell frowned, a sad look on her face. _

_ "Hey, hey, calm down-" _

_ "What's the point of surviving if I can't control my shakes?" Hannah exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. "It's pointless!"_

_ "Come on now, don't talk like that. You know how much it bothers me and Kai." Annabell said sternly Hannah sighed, lowering her hands. "Here, give me the gun." _

_ Hannah obeyed, holding the gun out by the barrel. Annabell took it and pocketed it. "Kai should be back soon. Don't worry."_

_ Hannah huffed and turned, climbing onto a large white boulder, crossing her arms. That was the only way she could keep her arms steady. Annabell sighed and climbed up next to her, taking a seat. _

_ "It's a lot better than it used to be," She said softly. Hannah refused to look at the woman. The bushes to Hannah's right rustled, and Kai stepped out, dragging a small deer along behind him. _

_ "Ladies, dinner is served!" He said with a grin. Hannah and Annabell perked up, their eyes both going wide. _

_ "You found a deer?!" Annabell asked with a large grin on her face. She slid off of the boulder, heading over to Kai and giving him a peck on the cheek. Kai smirked and chuckled while Hannah rolled her eyes at them._

_ "Gross. Get a room!" Hannah said, a hint of playfulness in her voice._

_ "Hey, someday you'll be doing the same thing with someone else, cowgirl," Annabell replied. "Come on, let's get a fire going." _

* * *

Hannah woke up with a start, inhaling sharply. The air was still chilly and the sky dark, signalling that she hadn't been asleep for very long. Hannah sat up slowly, away from Shade's warmth. She swallowed thickly, trying to get rid of the lump that was forming in her throat.

What had triggered that dream? That memory? Hannah couldn't be sure. She took a deep breath, trying to calm down. Kai and Annabell were gone.

Could they still be alive? Possibly. Hannah hadn't seen the walkers get them. In fact, they'd had more of a chance at survival than Hannah did, since they were both older and more capable. How Hannah had managed to escape _and_ survive was beyond her

_ Whatever... it's not like it matters anymore. Even if they are still alive, it's not like there's much chance of ever seeing them again._


	11. Pitstop

Kenny leaned against the car door, staring blankly ahead of him. The trees whizzed past quickly, with the car going fairly quickly. To his right, Clementine slumbered peacefully. Ahead of him, in the passenger seat, Conrad's head lolled, as he too was asleep.

"How long do you think it'll be until we get there?" Kenny asked quietly. Ahead of him, Tripp shrugged, shaking his head.

"No tellin'." He replied. "Man, this is all fucked..."

Kenny glanced at the seat in front of him, and then looked back outside. "Yeah. Tell me about it." Kenny said. "Y'know, Clem and I, we..." Kenny trailed off, taking a deep breath. "We used to be part of the New Frontier. But we're not anymore," Kenny said, adding the last part quickly. Tripp looked up at Kenny through the rearview mirror, and eyebrow raised.

"I mean, shit. I can see why you're not a part of it anymore. They're some real fucked up people."

Kenny's fists clenched in anger. "Yeah... Tell me about it. They kicked me out and kept Clem hostage because 'she's just a kid.' and 'she won't last out there.'" Kenny said. He mimicked them poorly, making his voice high-pitched and whiny. Tripp scoffed at that.

"Some kid my ass. Didn't she point a gun at Javi's back?" Tripp asked.

"Yeah. She's lucky that Javi's a good man and isn't mad at her for that." Kenny grumbled. Beside him, Clementine stirred and lifted her head.

"Could you two keep it down?" She asked, a drowsy look on her face. Kenny's frustration melted away when he saw the look on her face, and he was once again reminded that she was, in fact, just a kid.

A kid who was constantly fighting a mental battle with herself.

"Alright, darlin'. I'm sorry." Kenny said, giving her a warm smile. Clementine rested her head again, her eyes closing. Despite this, Kenny had a feeling that she hadn't gone back to sleep _just_ yet.

* * *

After driving for what had to be about an hour, the sun began to rise, casting a purple hue over the sky above. The purple melted into rosy pink, which, in turn, melted into a fiery orange.

Ahead, Kenny could see a red metal bridge, now rusty with age, with a small gas station to the right and a garage to the left. Underneath the bridge, a few abandoned cars lay, blocking the road. Kenny's heart sank when he saw that. As they approached, Tripp slowly eased off the gas, hoping to give the car behind him a chance to adjust. When they were nearly at a complete stop, Tripp pressed on the breaks slowly, stopping them completely.

Kenny looked over at Clementine, who was slowly sitting up and leaning forward, peering out through the windshield.

"Guess we gotta find a way around." Kenny said.

"Well, this makes it easier for Hannah to catch up to us." Clementine said. Kenny looked at her with a raised eyebrow. Clementine noticed and frowned, looking away.

"What? I'm worried she'll... Do something stupid."

"You mean you're worried she'll run down the road screamin' 'yee-haw' the entire time?" Kenny asked, a smirk on his face now. Clementine snickered at that.

"Based on what I know about her, yeah."

"Alright, everybody out," Tripp said, opening the car door and getting out. Conrad, who'd woken up when the car stopped, obeyed, getting out without a word. Kenny sighed and did so as well. In the car behind him, Eleanor rolled her window down while Javier, Gabriel and Mariana got out as well.

In front of the garage, two walkers stood, groaning, and slowly began to limp over to them. Javier reached behind his back, and then cursed.

"I got it," Kenny said. "Clem, give me your knife."

Clementine perked up, and then tossed a considerably large, sheathed knife over the car to Kenny. Kenny caught it and unsheathed it, advancing on the walkers. He pushed the first one down and firmly planting his foot on its chest. He waited for the other one to get closer before plunging the blade into the walker's head, pushing it down. He bent down and quickly killed the other walker, cleaned the knife, and resheathed it.

"Can I have that back?" Clementine asked.

"Don't you have another knife?"

"Yeah, but that one's bigger."

Kenny sighed, rolling his eyes and tossing the sheathed weapon back over to Clementine. "You ladies are all so picky."

Clementine rolled her eyes at that, smirking a bit.

"What's the issue?" Javier asked.

"There's cars clogging the overpass. Too many to drive through." Tripp said, peering at the cars.

"Hannah's horse is a Clydesdale, isn't he? Couldn't he just pull one of the cars away?" Javier asked.

"I suppose he could, but the thing about that is we don't know when Hannah will catch up to us." Tripp replied, his hands on his hips. "Time's of the essence. Spread out and search for a way to move these cars," Tripp ordered. Kenny hummed in response and turned, heading over to the gas station. There was grass growing in random patches on the ground, causing the concrete floor to have cracks. Gabriel and Mariana walked over to a red car near the gas station, searching it. Kenny walked up to the small convenience store. The doors and windows were covered in grime, making it impossible to see inside.

Kenny huffed and reached forward, opening a door and peaking inside. There were a few walkers inside, standing stock still with their backs to him.

_Yep, that's creepy._

Kenny quietly closed the door and backed away, looking over at Gabriel and Mariana.

"Don't go in there without an adult, there's a few walkers in there."

"Okay," Mariana replied simply. Gabriel surfaced from the car, peering at some orange jumper cables.

"Those might come in handy." Kenny commented.

"What are they?" Mariana asked, raising a questioning eyebrow at them.

"Those are called 'jumper cables,' little lady. You attach em' to a workin' car battery and a dead car battery, and once you start the workin' car, it charges the dead battery." Kenny said with a bit of a smirk.

Mariana hummed and looked over at the two cars. "Alright," She said. "Come on, let's go give these to Javi." Mariana said, tugging on Gabriel's jacket. Gabriel smiled at his sister and nodded in agreement, allowing her to lead him over to their uncle. Kenny smiled at the two kids.

Just then, a familiar cry sounded in the distance. He looked up and saw a black horse with a smaller figure on its back race into the area. Kenny snorted. Of course it was Hannah.

Shade skidded to a stop, rearing up on his hind legs. Hannah's eyes went wide and panic crossed over her face.

"Wait Shade down-" She tried, but it was too late. She slipped off of Shade's back, landing flat on her butt. She had a dumbfounded look of betrayal on her face as Shade dropped down onto all fours and turned, sniffing her. Javier had broken into a fit of girly giggles while Clementine was running over, helping Hannah to her feet. Hannah's cheeks became a dark red as she dusted herself off, placing a hand on Shade's snout and giving him a stern look. Gabriel and Mariana had both burst into fits of laughter.

"Gee, love you too, Shade." Hannah muttered. Shade snorted and gently nudged her shoulder as if to say sorry. Clementine covered her mouth and giggled a bit, earning a smile from Hannah. She stood up straight, scanning the area. Kenny decided to go greet her.

"Good to see you catch up to us in one piece," Kenny said. "Question- can your horse pull a car?"

"Oh yeah, he's pulled things much heavier than a car before. Why?"

Kenny, Javier and Tripp exchanged glances at that. "We kinda need him to pull one of these cars out of the way." Tripp said, gesturing to the cars. Hannah peered over at the cars and frowned at that.

"But the noise-"

"Doesn't matter. We can haul ass out of here once the car's been moved." Kenny spoke up. Hannah rubbed her neck nervously, contemplating what to do for a moment. She sighed, caving in.

"Alright, but... We need something to tie him to the car. You guys look for something, alright? I'm gonna find a patch of grass for him to graze at, then i'll help you look." Hannah said, leading Shade over to a patch of grass. She patted her horse's head gently, her expression faltering for a moment. She closed her eyes, shaking her head and stood up straight, quickly putting on a relaxed look.

"Alright, where do we start?" Hannah asked.

"Well, we could either check the walker infested convenience store over there, or that mysterious garage over there." Kenny said.

"Uhh..."

"Here, how about this; Conrad and I will keep watch while Javi and his family check the garage and Kenny, Clem and Hannah check the gas station." Tripp said.

"Alright, I'm okay with that. Kids, stay behind me," Javier instructed, leading Gabriel and Mariana over to the garage. Tripp and Conrad both stood, side-by-side, looking down the road.

"What Javi said," Kenny said, looking at Clementine and Hannah sternly. Hannah reached over her back and pulled out the crowbar that Javier gave her. Clementine drew her large knife.

"Kenny, take the small knife," Clementine said, holding the smaller knife out to him. Kenny didn't hesitate in taking it, and then leading them to the grime covered doors.

_Well... Here goes nothing._


	12. Onward

Kenny led Hannah and Clementine over to the gas station. When he got to the grime covered doors, he paused and looked back at Hannah and Clementine.

"Alright, here's the plan," He began. "I'm gonna open this door and whistle to get their attention. I'll let a few out at a time to keep things under control. Got it?" Kenny asked.

"Roger that," Hannah said with a grin. Clementine nodded once in understanding, gripping her knife tightly. Kenny's eyes narrowed as he turned to the door, reaching forward and slowly pulling it open. He whistled quietly, attracting only two of the walker's attention. They turned, groaning. The groans alerted a third one, and slowly, they stumbled out of the building, arms outstretched toward Hannah and Clementine. Kenny closed the door quickly and quietly.

Hannah stepped forward, swinging her crowbar at one of the walker's head hard enough to kill it. Then, she jabbed it into the mouth of the other. Clementine approached the third walker and kicked its knee, plunging the knife into its head once it was down. Hannah pushed the second walker down, impaling its head on her crowbar. Clementine's face scrunched up at the smell of walkers.

Hannah yanked her crowbar out of the walker's head, scowling. She looked up at Kenny and nodded at him.

At this, Kenny opened the door again, and one more walker came stumbling out. Hannah made quick work of the walker, killing it before it could get far.

"I think that's all of them." Kenny said, peering into the store. Clementine walked past Hannah and right into the place, looking around. The air was heavy and musty smelling, evidently not being used for quite a while.

"You think they starved?" Hannah asked, walking up next to Clementine. Clementine shrugged in response.

"It's hard to tell these days." She replied. Hannah hummed in response and turned, going right down the first aisle. The floor was white tile, with sage green walls and a white ceiling. The metal racks were painted tan, with some of the paint chipping away to reveal dark gray steel beneath it. To the left was a small cash register, and there was no refrigerated section in this small store.

"We need something that we can tie to Shade's saddle. The saddle has some hooks on it that were meant to be used to pull things, which is cool, I guess... But the problem is that we need to find something sturdy enough to withstand the stress of of being pulled, y'know? Something that won't break easily."

Clementine took a moment to process and then nodded. "Alright," She said, going onto the third aisle. There was all kinds of supplies on that aisle- duct tape, measuring tape, water hoses, copper wire...

Clementine rose an eyebrow and picked up the measuring tape, pulling it out and letting it go. It slid back into its container with a whirring sound.

Clementine giggled a bit and did it again. Hannah climbed over the metal shelf of the aisle, peering over at Clementine with a raised eyebrow. "You playin' with a measuring tape?" She asked. Clementine bristled and her head whipped around to look at Hannah.

"What- what're you doing?" She asked as Kenny entered the store, going down a random aisle.

Hannah smiled, her eyes locked onto Clementine. "I'm looking at you." She said. Clementine huffed and rolled her eyes.

"Well, I know that... Shouldn't you be looking for rope or something?"

"I should be, but all I found was some spools of plastic." Hannah said. Her eyes scanned over Clementine's aisle and landed on some piles of rope. "Lookie there."

Clementine followed her gaze and hummed. She went over to the rope and picked it up, feeling the weight of the course material in her hands. Hannah strained, climbing on top of the shelf, and then hopped down behind Clementine.

"That should work. 'Ey, Ken, we found some rope!" Hannah called. Kenny's head appeared over the shelf.

"What kinda rope?" He asked. Clementine peered at a black tag tied around it. The underside was white. She lifted the tag up, peering at it.

"Nylon," She replied, frowning a bit.

"Huh. Yeah, that'll do just fine," Kenny said, going up to them and taking the rope. "C'mon, let's go tell the others." He said, leaving the convenience store. Hannah turned and followed him out, Clementine just a few steps behind her.

"How do you know if your horse will pull it?" Clementine asked.

"Hmm? Oh! Shade's very well trained. He's like a big puppy," Hannah said cheerfully. She stopped and looked over at her horse, whistling. "Shade, come!"

Shade, who was laying down, whinnied in response, but made no move to get up. Hanah stared at him blankly, blinking once. Clementine scoffed, and looked at Shade, whistling. "Shade, come," She tried.

Shade stood up and trotted over to Clementine, nuzzling her gently. Clementine smiled and laughed a bit in response. Hannah huffed and crossed her arms.

"Wow, i'm feeling loved today," Hannah grumbled, reaching over and scratching Shade's ears. "Shade, follow," She commanded. She turned, leading Shade over to the rusted cars. This time the stallion obeyed her, following without whining. Kenny was looping the rope around the bumper of the car.

"He's ready when you are," Hannah said, a gentle hand on Shade's shoulder. Kenny nodded and stood up, bringing the rope over to Shade. "Tie the rope here... Here... and here."

Kenny obeyed, tying the rope to three hooks located at the front of the saddle.

"Shade, pull," Hannah commanded. Shade lurched forward, his hooves digging into the ground. At the same time, the rusted car creaked and groaned loudly. The car began to roll forward, making it easier for Shade to pull. Shade began to pick up momentum, pulling the car along easily. With the rusted car out of the way, there was now enough space for both cars to drive through safely.

"Shade, stop," Hannah said. The horse obeyed, panting a bit. Hannah quickly untied the rope from Shade, petting his head. "Good boy," She whispered, praising her horse. Shade nuzzled Hannah in response.

"Alright, let's get goin'," Tripp said. Hannah looked over at them, and then back at Shade, her back towards everyone. Clementine looked back at her, and frowned. She stole a quick glance at the adults, and then walked over to her.

"Hey, are you okay?" Clementine asked. Hannah turned to look at Clementine.

"I'm fine," She said. "You guys should probably get going, since Kate needs help and all."

Clementine frowned at that. "You're not coming?"

"Shade needs time to rest," Hannah said. "I'll catch up to y'all again, I promise." Hannah said, smiling reassuringly at Clementine.

"Won't you be lonely?" Clementine asked. Hannah raised an eyebrow, and then smirked.

"Aww, you're worried about me being lonely. Cute." She said, crossing her arms. Clementine rolled her eyes and turned away.

"Hold on," She said. Clementine ran over to the car and knocked on the window where Kenny was sitting. The window rolled down, and a few words were exchanged between them. A few moments later, the window rolled back up, and the cars started rolling forward, carefully maneuvering between the other rusted cars on the road. Clementine backed away and turned, going back over to Hannah. By now, Shade was laying on the ground, drifting off to sleep while Hannah scratched his head gently. She looked up at Clementine as she approached.

"So you're staying?" She asked, a hint of hopefulness in her voice.

"Well, i'm not the one who got shot," Clementine replied flatly, sitting across from Hannah. Hannah scoffed and looked down at Shade.

"Besides, since you caught up last time, Kenny trusts that we'll catch up to them again." Clementine added with a shrug. Hannah hummed in response, a content look on her features.

"Well, Clem, thanks for keeping me company." Hannah said with a sincere smile. Clementine's heart fluttered at that. Hannah looked down. "Do you remember when I told you that I was alone for the first few months of this?"

Clementine perked up and nodded. "Yeah."

"Well, I apologize, but that's not the entire truth... I was with two teenagers when this started."

Clementine rose an eyebrow and tilted her head. "Why are you bringing this up now?" She asked. Her curiosity had been spiked at this point.

"I had a dream about them last night, that's why," Hannah said softly. "I just... I'm sorry, it's stupid. I miss them. A lot. I mean, there's a good chance that they're alive, but even then, I'll probably never see them again." She added with a shrug. Clementine gave Hannah an empathetic look.

"I'm... Sorry to hear that. In the beginning, this man found me and took care of me. He... Didn't last." Clementine said, looking away. Hannah tilted her head at Clementine.

"I'm sorry." Hannah said. "But hey," She began. Clementine looked up at her. "There's a reason that these things happen, y'know? Every single thing that's happened so far has led up to this moment."

Clementine couldn't help but to smile. "Yeah... It has."


	13. River

**(A/N): Fair warning, in this chapter, the fate of AJ will be revealed. It's a sad and tragic thing that sadly happens everyday around the world- if you don't think you can handle it, skip the italicised part of the chapter.**

* * *

"Shouldn't we be following the others now?" Clementine asked. Hannah looked at the sky, and then around the land around her. She recognized this place; she'd been in the area for, admittedly, quite a while.

"I know this place pretty well," Hannah said. "Which means I know a lot of shortcuts. Relax, we'll catch up to them in no time," Hannah said, giving Clementine a smile. "We'd just have to cut through the forest... That way." Hannah said, nodding Northwest of them. Clementine rose an eyebrow at that but didn't protest.

"C'mon, les' go." Hannah said, leading Clementine and Shade into the forest. By now, they'd gone ahead of the bridge and a little ways down the road. The forest was, thankfully, level with the road at this point.

The leaves in the forest were beginning to change colors, signifying the arrival of fall. The overgrowth of the forest was beginning to shrivel and wilt, making the trek through the forest ultimately more pleasant. The cold, crisp air of fall was refreshing to Hannah.

"It's a nice day." Hannah said, looking at the canopy of golden leaves above.

"I guess." Clementine said with a shrug. "Seems like a normal day to me."

"It's only gonna get colder," Hannah commented. "You should probably find some warmer clothes soon."

Clementine looked at Hannah, raising an eyebrow. "You're one to talk. That hoodie? That's as thin as paper!"

"How would you know?" Hannah asked indignantly, carefully stepping over a tree root. So far, the girls hadn't encountered any walkers in the forest.

Lately, Hannah noticed that, as time went on, the population of walkers was seemingly starting to dwindle.

Clementine reached over, pinching the fabric of Hannah's hood. "That's how I know."

"Smart alec." Hannah said.

"Why don't you get a thicker one?"

"I can't." Hannah said, looking down. The sentimental value of it was too great- a remnant left by someone she didn't physically remember, and yet remembered having cared about them deeply at some point.

"Why not?" Clementine asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It's from my brother." Hannah replied with a shrug. Clementine's eyes went wide.

"Oh." Clementine said, taken aback by that. She reached up, gently brushing the rim of her hat, before taking it off. Hannah looked over at her, her eyes going wide at Clementine's messy hair.

"This hat belonged to my dad." She said softly. Hannah's eyes flickered over to the hat. Nearby, she could her the flow of water, and it occurred to her that they were near a river.

"It looks pretty dirty... Do you want to wash it?" Hannah asked. Clementine hesitated for a moment, looking up at Hannah, and then back at her hat.

"Yeah, I guess it could use a wash..." She mumbled. Hannah nodded and looked over her shoulder, spotting Shade grazing. She whistled, causing the horse to lift his head.

"Shade, follow," She said, turning and going left. The river cut through the forest, dividing it in half. "It's a pretty clean river, I guess. There's some limestone rocks upstream that act as a filter for the water, since limestone has a bunch of little holes in it."

"Huh. That's... That's really cool." Clementine said. Shade approached the water, bending his head down and taking a drink. Hannah slid her hoodie off of her body and submerged it in water. Hannah watched as a small stream of red began to come from the hoodie. The darker stain on the shoulder began to fade away.

Clementine bent down and carefully dipped her hat into the river, scrubbing the brown spots with her fingers. They faded quite a bit, and when Clementine pulled her hat out of the water, it looked much cleaner than it had been before. She perked up, looking around, and spotted a large boulder. She walked over to it and climbed onto it, setting her now soaked hat down beside her.

Hannah stood up straight, wringing her hoodie out. She went over to Shade, going around to his left side. There was a satchel attached to the saddle, a rather large one, that Hannah used often. She opened it up and rummaged inside, frowning. Then, she pulled out a bag of chips.

"Heads up!" Hannah said. Clementine perked up, and when she did, Hannah tossed the bag over to her. Clementine caught it and eyed it warily before opening it and snacking. Hannah felt around the bag, her hands brushing something soft. She pulled it out, and immediately regretted it.

It was an old picture of her, Kai, and Annabell. Kai was the one who took the picture, with him being on the left side, Hannah in the middle, and Annabell on the right side. Each of them had a broad, toothy grin on their face. She froze, staring at the picture with wide eyes. Clementine noticed the strange behavior, tilting her head at Hannah.

"Hey, are you okay?" She asked, sliding down from the rock and walked over.

"Oh, uh... Don't worry about it," Hannah said, hastily stuffing the picture into the satchel. She pulled out a silver flask and shook it, frowning when she saw that it was nearly empty. "Looks like i'm out of water." She said. Clementine looked at the river, raising an eyebrow.

"is it safe to drink?" She asked.

"It will be, I just neeeeed... Ah, there it is!" Hannah said, fishing out a black pill bottle. It had a blue label on it, with directions inside of a what box. "It's just a precaution, really. I forget what it's called, but someone told me that these clean water." She said, reading the direction. "I use em' all the time and I ain't never gotten sick before." She said, turning and kneeling down beside the water. She filled her flask up, peered at the directions, and dropped two small white pills into the bottle.

"It kills germs and stuff," Hannah said. "Read it yourself if you don't believe me." Hannah added, holding the bottle of pills out to her. Clementine took it, peering at the tiny directions.

"That's helpful," She said. "How do you know about these things, anyway?"

"I think I learned about it in school, when I was a fourth grader," Hannah said with a shrug. Clementine hummed and dropped the pill bottle back in the bag. "You thirsty? I don't mind sharing." Hannah said. with a smile. Clementine paused, staring at Hannah for a second, before speaking.

"How can you be so happy all the time?" She asked. This took Hannah off guard.

"I... What?"

"You're always either smiling or trying to make other people smile, or help them. Why? Hasn't that affected you negatively before?" Clementine asked. By the look on her face, Hannah could tell that she was genuinely curious and confused.

"Being nice to people can have a negative effect on you, but just because there's the small chance that it might backfire doesn't mean you shouldn't try." Hannah replied. Clementine blinked and looked down, pondering Hannah's words. "Now drink, I think you need it." Hannah said, pressing the flask into her hands. Clementine's fingers wrapped around it and she took it, looking down. Her face couldn't be hidden by her cap, so Hannah could see her expression become sad.

"Don't be afraid to talk about your feelings, Clem," Hannah said softly. Clementine stared at the flask for a moment before deflating completely.

"I don't deserve happiness." She said softly.

"What? What'd you mean?"

"I failed him. Both of them..."

* * *

_In the dark of night, Clementine sat on the ground with a group of people. In the middle of a circle was a moderately sized fire keeping them warm._

_ "Is there enough for seconds?" Ava asked, having finished her dinner already._

_ "Well, since Kenny turned in early, yeah." David replied, happily scooping more food onto her plate. Ava grinned and dug in greedily. _

_ "Hey, Clem, why did Ken turn in early? You know?" David asked,, direction his attention to Clementine. Clementine shrugged. _

_ "I don't know. He told me he was just tired. He's one to talk... I have to stay up all night, listening to his snoring." _

_ At that, a chorus of chuckles rose from the group, and then died down. "Ahh, yeah. My wife used to complain about my snoring a lot," David said. He scoffed. "Everyone did. Like, 'David, you're snoring loudly!' But it was nothing compared to how my dad snored." He said. Clementine smiled at that. _

_ "Oh my gosh, my brother? His snores were awful!" Max spoke up. "Y'all ever heard the sound of an airplane? That's what he sounded like! I'm surprised the poor bastard didn't suffocate in his sleep." _

_ Clementine snickered at that. She looked down, her face falling. David and Ava exchanged a knowing look, each feeling sorrow for the girl. AJ, her adoptive brother, was dying; there was no denying it at this point. _

_ "Clem, i'm sorry," Ava said, putting her hand on the girl's shoulder. Clementine sighed and looked up._

_ "You did your best. I appreciate-"_

_ Before Clementine could finish her sentence, the cry of a toddler rang out across camp. _

Oh no...

_ Clementine was quick to get to her feet, dashing towards the sound. Her feet took her to Lingard's tent, where Dr. Lingard lay, his eyes bloodshot, staring dully at Kenny and a very sick AJ. Kenny cursed and tried to shush AJ._

_ "The hell's going on here?!" David snapped as he came up behind Clementine. His eyes snapped over to Lingard and his expression became even more furious. He grabbed Lingard, pulling him up to his feet. "Pull yourself together and help us deal with this!" _

_ "Kenny, what did you do?" Clementine cried fearfully._

_ "I'm saving him!" Kenny snapped, rounding on them. "All of y'all are just... Giving up on him!"_

_ "You were told that he was a lost cause and you STILL USED OUR MEDICINE?! This is how you repay us for taking you in? STEALING FROM US!?" David roared. _

_ "David, please, he's just trying to help his kid-" Lingard tried._

_ "No. Don't fight me on this, Paul. He has to go." David snapped._

_ "No, please! Give us another chance, we- we'll replace it!" Clementine begged, feeling panic rising inside of her chest. David looked at her, his face softening._

_ "This doesn't concern you." He said. Kenny grit his teeth, anger flashing through his eye. Then, he turned, picking up AJ. _

_ "Fine. We'll go then." He said. Clementine felt her heart sink. The place was safe, but when it came down to it, she couldn't leave Kenny, no matter what. _

_ Kenny began to leave, only to stop when Max stepped in front of him. Ava, Lingard and David formed a loose circle around Kenny. Clementine felt dread begin to tear at her. This was never a good sign._

_ "Please-" Clementine began. A gentle hand grabbed her arm and pulled her back. She didn't fight back, not wanting to hurt herself by accident. _

_ "The hell are you fuckers doin'?" Kenny growled, his voice low._

_ "You're dangerous, Kenny. Clementine and AJ are staying here."_

_ "No!" Kenny snapped. Clementine suddenly tried to jerk out of the grasp of the person behind her, only resulting in them physically restraining both of her arms._

_"No!" Clementine screamed. The group of people around Kenny closed in on him, with Ava taking AJ out of his arms. David dragged him away and threw him to the ground._

_ "I'LL KILL YOU!" Kenny roared, jumping up and going at David. David dodged and grabbed his arm, kneeing him in the gut. AJ reached out to Kenny, a frown on his small face. _

_ "Max, help me with this!" David ordered. Clementine watched in horror as David and Max dragged a raging Kenny away. She felt numb, and at the same time she felt betrayal; she was angry at Kenny, she was angry at the New Frontier. The person let go of Clementine, and she slowly walked over to Ava. Ava turned to her, a sad look on her face._

_ Nothing needed to be said; Ava held AJ out to Clementine, and Clementine took him, holding him in her arms. _

_ "He's going to die soon, isn't he?" Clementine asked in a voice barely audible. Lingard stepped forward, his brows furrowed together._

_ "Yes." He said softly. "I'm... I'm sorry, Clem."_

_ Clementine let out a shaky breath and looked around, spotting a wooden crate nearby. She hurried towards it and took a seat, placing AJ on her lap. He was very pale now, a bit yellowish even, with labored breathing, and his eyes were drooping. The whites of his eyes were turning yellow, and his mouth hung open. Clementine sniffed, feeling a heavy lump form in her throat. She tried to put on a brave face for AJ, hoping he wouldn't notice her trembling lips and teary eyes. _

_ "It's just... Once you catch yellow fever, you're a goner." Lingard said._

_ "Shut up, Paul, she knows that!" Ava hissed. Clementine let out a choked sob and held AJ close, shutting her eyes tightly. AJ babbled softly and incoherently, blinking slowly. _

_ His breathing began to slow down. Clementine pulled him back and checked the pulse in his arm. It was a very weak pulse, and for a moment, Clementine didn't know if he still even had once._

_ A few minutes went by- minutes that felt like an eternity to Clementine. Soon, AJ's eyes closed, and his small breathing stopped, and then, he was gone._


	14. Storage House

Clementine rode on Shade, her face down while Hannah led them through the forest. It was stupid to trust someone she barely knew, but at the same time, someone her own age was less likely to hurt her than some random adult was.

It was sad that this was what the world had come to.

Their pace was slow in steady, seeing as Hannah wasn't in any rush to catch up. Clementine herself wasn't really in any particular rush either, come to think of it. The only real consequence she had for being out here so long was getting an earful from Kenny back at Richmond. The sun was beginning to set now, bathing the sky in a fiery orange light. Long shadows fell across the land from the trees in the forest.

"You don't mind being away from your friend for another day or two, do ya?" Hannah asked nervously. Clementine's eyes flickered up to look at Hannah.

"Not really. The worst he'll do is lecture me angrily and then let me go."

Hannah huffed in amusement. "Alright. There's a storage house up ahead where we can wait out the night." She said. Clementine stared at Hannah blankly for a moment before speaking.

"How long have you been in this place?"

"Few months I guess, though I was too nervous to approach any of the settlements until a week ago. Probably should've stayed in the woods..." She said, that last part mostly to herself. Clementine rose an eyebrow at her and looked back down.

The sun set quickly, taking its warmth with it and leaving the world in darkness. The sky was a deep blue, with white, glittering spots dotting the sky. Hannah looked up at the sky only for a brief moment before continuing. Clementine looked up, through the canopy of leaves, trying to get a good view of the sky.

A voice in the distance cursed loudly, shocking both Hannah and Clementine. Shade whinnied in response, pawing the ground anxiously.

"Hey, shh, shh," Hannah whispered, putting a hand on the horse's head.

Then, in the distance, another voice spoke.

"Batter up, fuck-face!"

Clementine and Hannah shared a look, and then headed towards the voice quickly. The sound carried them to a dirt path in the middle of the forest, with a few walkers surrounding the path. Javier was desperately trying to fight off two walkers, but he'd somehow ended up on the ground with a metal baseball bat a few feet away. To Clementine's surprise, Shade lurched forward, running out onto the path. Clementine froze, clinging onto the horse as her reared up and brought his front hooves down on one of the walker's heads. Javier was able to swipe his baseball bat off the ground, allowing him to kill the walker.

Javier turned, eyeing Clementine, before snickering.

"What?" Clementine asked snippily, sitting up quickly. Hannah came hurrying around to face Shade's frown, a worried look on her face.

"Clem, you okay?" She asked quickly. Clementine nodded, sliding off of Shade and standing next to Hannah.

"So sorry, he doesn't like walkers." Hannah said, gently rubbing Shade's nose.

"Who does?" Javier asked. Hannah and Clementine shared a look before looking back at Javier.

"I thought you guys went to Richmond." Hannah said. Javier frowned and turned, walking down the path.

"We did," Javier began. "Kate's fine, Gabe and Mari are with her... But..." Javier closed his eyes, shaking his head. "The New Frontier took over, and my brother is one of the people in charge."

Hannah and Clementine exchanged a surprised glance. "Wait, if your brother is in charge then why are you out here?" Clementine asked. "Which one is your brother?"

"David. We got kicked out because we defended ourselves from the assholes who shot at us." Javier spat. Hannah frowned, putting a hand on her shoulder. Clementine glanced at her, then up at Javier.

"How is he? David?" Clementine asked softly. Javier sighed.

"He's fine... And a lot happier now that he has his family back." He replied. Clementine looked down, a small smile on her face.

"Did Kenny tell you that we were part of the New Frontier once?" She asked. Hannah frowned at that.

"I trust what you told me, Clem, but Kenny lied to me and told me y'all where their prisoners."

Clementine gave Hannah a surprised look. "He lied to you?" She asked, feeling anger begin to rise up inside of her.

"There it is." Someone spoke up. Clementine looked up and saw that, ahead of them, Kenny, Conrad, and Tripp were walking side by side. The person who spoke- Tripp- was referring to the storage house that Hannah had previously been taking Clementine to.

"Wait, does the New Frontier own that place?" Hannah asked in surprise. "That's just the place I was taking us to."

"They do now," Javier replied. Hannah scoffed, frowning at that. "David sent us there."

"I trust him," Clementine said. "But... I don't think Kenny does." She added, her eyes trained on Kenny's back.

"It's now or never-" Tripp began, looking over his shoulder. His eyes widened in surprise. "Shit. When did you two kids get here?" Tripp asked in surprise.

"We got here when we heard Javi shout 'batter up.'" Hannah replied. Kenny looked over at them and smirked.

"I'm surprised you didn't scream like a cowgirl," Kenny said. Hannah stiffened for a moment, her nostrils flaring.

"Uh... Yee haw?" She said flatly. "Is that better?"

Clementine giggled from beside her, earning a smile from Hannah. Kenny only rolled his eyes in response.

Hannah looked over her shoulder, whistling at Shade. His ears flitted up and he looked at her, giving her all his attention.

"Shade, follow," She murmured.

"Now!" Tripp ordered, standing up and bolting through the cluster. Everyone followed his lead, pushing through the hoard. Clementine ducked under a walker, and when Hannah ran past it, she clocked its temple with her crowbar.

They ran into a fenced area, with Clementine quickly closing a gate. The fence was too frail to hold off the walkers for very long; carefully, she placed her hands on the fence, pushing against the hoard. Tripp, Kenny, and Conrad all followed her lead.

Meanwhile, Hannah ran over to a chain and pulled down with all of her strength. A metal gate next to her began to lift up.

"Javi, help!" Hannah ordered. Javier didn't hesitate; he pulled down on the chain as well. Shade was quick to crawl through the gap and into the building.

"The gate's open!" Javier called. Clementine rushed away from the fence, diving into the room. Kenny followed, with Tripp and Conrad trailing closely behind him. They dived into the room.

"Come on, we got you covered!" Tripp barked. There was a creak on the other side, and when Hannah and Javier let go of the chain, the gate remained open.

They wasted no time in diving into the building. When they did, Clementine and Kenny let go of the chain on the other side, allowing the metal gate to slam down.

Hannah panted a bit, and then looked up. The ground was made from smooth concrete, and the walls and frame of the place was made from strong metal. There were dark red storage units stacked atop each other on the ground. Each one had white labels painted on, with different settlement names on them.

"Clem," Hannah whispered softly. Clementine perked up, and Hannah nodded at one of the red crates.

"Those are supplies from Prescott."

"Wait a minute, you're right..." Tripp said, peering at the storage units. "There's shit from all kinds of settlements!"

Outside, a few gunshots went off. A voice spoke, cursing.

"There's so many out here! Come on, let me in!"

Javier went for a door beside the gate, only for Kenny to lunge at him and push him away.

"No! You're not lettin' that fucker in!" Kenny snapped. Javier glared at Kenny.

"Maybe you don't like him, but he's my brother!" Javier shot back. Tripp grabbed Kenny and pulled him away while Javier opened the door, allowing David to come in. David came in quickly and then slammed the door, ushering Javier out of the way. David pushed a small metal crate against the door, then relaxed.

"Good to see you again, brother," David said, looking up at Javier. Javier smiled warmly at David.

"David?" Clementine asked tentatively. Kenny huffed and looked away, crossing his arms. David spun around, a surprised look on his face. He smiled warmly at her.

"Well, i'll be damned. 'S good to see you again, kid." He said, putting his hands on his hips. Clementine smiled back at him genuinely.

Shade snorted softly, nudging one of the metal crates. David walked past, frowning.

"The hell's this?" He asked, inspecting the crates.

"I was hoping you could tell me." Tripp said. "You got crates from Prescott here."

"I had no idea about ANY of this, I swear," David said, turning to look at Tripp.

Hannah walked past David, further into the storage unit. Shade followed her.

"The hell...? Hey, you look kinda familiar." David commented. Hannah looked back at him, an eyebrow raised.

"It's possible you've seen me during the times you're out and about," Hannah said. "I mean, i've been here a while. It wouldn't surprise me, honestly."

David hummed in response, leaving it at that. "You got a horse? Damn, that thing's bigger than me!" David said, an amused look on his face.

"Look at all this shit, we're frickin' rollin' in it!" A familiar voice said. Shade blended in well with the surrounding area, so both David and Hannah ducked behind him, peeking out down a hallway with a metal shelf on the left side. Everyone else quickly pressed themselves against the wall, with Javier in front of everyone.

Badger and his friends came into view with duffel bags, setting them on a wooden table.

"Yeah, but we would've had more if you hadn't gone all trigger-happy on David's family." Max said. Badger scoffed.

"You mean the cowgirl? She's not even related to them!"

"You shot his wife, you dumb shit!" Lonnie said. "Look man, you gotta control your itchy trigger finger."

David's fists clenched and he shared a look with Javier, who nodded at him. David crouched down and crept around Shade, flanking the wall. Hannah stood, crouched down. Javier followed closely behind, with the other adults.

"Stay here," Kenny whispered to Clementine. She frowned, but obeyed, peeking around the corner as Kenny followed.

"Who gives a damn about them, anyways? David's been just fine without them." Badger said.

David stood up, drawing his gun on them. Javier followed, along with Tripp, who'd miraculously kept his rifle.

"That's where you're wrong." David spoke up, causing the three men to spin around. "What the hell's going on? You've been raiding settlements?"

The men exchanged a look.

"Clem," Hannah whispered. Clementine looked up at Hannah and saw her waving Clementine over. Clementine peered around the corner one last time before rushing around behind Shade.

"If we sneak up on them, we can block their way out," Hannah whispered. "Shade, lead... Quietly." Hannah murmured. Shade turned and began walking down the hallway with surprisingly soft footsteps, barely audible. An argument was beginning to spring up ahead, distracting everyone from the large horse treading through the hallway.

"That way," Hannah whispered to Shade, pointing at a spot near some stairs. "Stop."

"We don't need this!" Badger snapped. "We're leaving!"

"No, you're not," David snapped. "That's an order!"

"We only take orders from Joan now. No-one will believe you anyways." Max said, turning and starting towards the entrance. He smacked face-first into Shade's side, stumbling back.

"The hell?" He questioned as Shade turned his head to look at him. Hannah pulled her crowbar out and ducked beneath Shade, coming out to face Max with narrowed eyes.

"The hell?!" Mac exclaimed, backing away quickly. Hannah only stared at him with narrowed eyes.

"You!" Badger said, then laughed. "I'm surprised you survived that fall without cracking your head open!"

"You'd best listen to David if you want to live." Hannah said. Badger scoffed.

"Fuckin' weirdo," He said, holding his hands up in surrender.

"Wait, what're you-"

"For fuck's sake, they got us surrounded." Badger quipped. Lonnie sighed in agitation, following Badger's lead. Max was the last to surrender.

"Good. That's real good," David said. "Anyone have anything we can use to tie em' up?"

"There might be something upstairs," Javier offered. Hannah ducked underneath Shade, tugging on Clementine's arm.

"Come on, let's go find some rope," She whispered, heading up some stairs. Clementine followed without a word.

"Who trained Shade so well?" Clementine asked as they entered the room. The room had a pink hue in it, with pinkish metal pipes around them as walls. On the left side was a simple metal shelf with some cable ties and rope.

"Those teenagers I told you about? They did." Hannah said, swiping the cables and rope. She sighed sadly. "It's strange... All three of us met in a hospital by chance."

"A hospital?" Clementine echoed, following Hannah back downstairs. Hannah ducked under Shade again and presented her findings.

"That'll do," Javier said, taking the cables and rope. Hannah backed away and turned to Clementine.

"S' what I said, ain't it?" Hannah asked. Clementine snickered at the way Hannah spoke.

"Yep, in the beginning of this I woke up in a hospital. Last thing I remembered before waking was hearing someone say goodbye." Hannah said.

"Hannah, that's awful. You don't remember anything from before that?"

"I mean, I remembered things I learned in school and I remembered feeling certain things, but other than that, no."

Clementine frowned at that. "You don't remember why you were there?"

"No... One of my friends was there because of a concussion, and the other was there because she sprained her wrist. Fun stuff."

"Alright ladies, enough chit-chat," David said. "We're going to talk to Joan."


	15. Small Talk

"I can't believe you guys would do this." David growled. He tone was directed towards his three men, who, Javier noticed, only Lonnie and Max were starting to look guilty.

Behind him, Clementine and Hannah spoke in hushed voices, each taking in their environment. Shade was being led by Hannah, and surprisingly, the stallion hadn't made a single sound since they got there.

"Okay, listen," David said, leaning over to whisper in Javier's ear. "Once we get there, I'm gonna need someone to get some guns, and i'm gonna need someone to go get Kate and the kids. Armory and hospital are right next to each other. Once that's done, go to the building with the raven crest in front of it. It's on a red flag; can't miss it."

Javier nodded in understanding while David glanced up at the people behind him. He rose an eyebrow, and then grinned. David glanced at Javier and nodded to something behind him.

Javier looked back raising an eyebrow. He saw Clementine looking at Hannah with a strange admiration, and Hannah seemed to be totally oblivious. Javier looked back at David, grinning.

"Should we tell them?"

"Nah. C'mon, let's go. Everyone, we're moving out," David said, raising his voice slightly. There was a small chorus of sounds acknowledging David, and then soft footsteps as David led them towards the other entrance of Richmond- a sewer.

At the smell of the sewer, Shade snorted and lifted his head, jerking back. Hannah let out a grunt of surprise, and huffed in agitation.

"Shade, come ON," She hissed quietly, pulling him along. He snorted, whinnying softly, before begrudgingly obeying.

The smell of the sewer was rancid, causing Javier to involuntarily gag. "Oh my god, it smells like shit!"

"Wow, ya don't say," Hannah replied flatly.

"Quiet," David ordered. From behind them, Javier could hear Tripp and Kenny snicker under their breath.

"Lead the way," David growled softly at Max. "You been here before."

Hesitantly, the three men trekked ahead of them, leasing the way through the dark sewer. Javier frowned and reached into his pocket, pulling out a flashlight and turning it on. The walls and ground of the sewer were now dry, with darker brown stains along the floor and a greenish tint of mold on the walls. Javier's nose wrinkled at the sight.

"Aw, god..." Hannah grumbled.

"What? Never been in a sewer before?" Kenny asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.

"No!" Hannah hissed quietly. "I have a horse, for god's sake, I can't just waltz into a sewer!"

Clementine broke into a fit of giggles while Conrad snickered. Tripp scoffed.

"What's so funny?" Hannah asked, a confused edge to her voice.

"N-nothing," Clementine replied, trying to control herself. Hannah huffed while Javier looked back at them, raising an eyebrow. Hannah looked exasperated while Clementine looked as though she was struggling to contain laughter.

_Ah, kids._

"Fuckin' girls, man..." Badger muttered.

"Quiet." David snapped.

Javier examined their hostages, and then he went back to listening to the people behind him. Clementine and Hannah had gone silent, as did the other adults. There were a few words barely above whispers exchanged every now and then.

"This'll be the death of me..." Hannah whispered

"Why do you say that?" Clementine asked. Hannah was silent for a moment before replying.

"Things might not go our way. And that's bad because I care about most of the people here. I... fuck." She whispered softly. Javier's heart sank. He hadn't thought about that before- it was entirely possible that things wouldn't go their way. That someone might die.

Javier didn't want to think about it.

After what felt like forever in the sewer, they came up to a ladder which lead up to a manhole. Hannah sighed in dismay.

"There's another exit which you can use to take your horse out," David said offhandedly. "Should be the next one... You'll come out near a quarantine zone. The hospital and armory should be visible there. So should be visible from there. It's probably best if you leave your horse to a stable- they're by the gates- no-one will notice an extra horse." He said softly. Hannah nodded in understanding.

"Wait," Clementine whispered. Hannah paused and looked at Clementine. "Just... Be careful, okay?"

Hannah smiled brightly at Clementine. "Will do," She said cheerfully. With that, she was off.

"Alright, I'm gonna bring Max, Lonnie and Badger to the cathedral. You guys go get weapons and my family; Ava will be waiting for you in front of the crest." David whispered softly.

Javier nodded in understanding. He turned to Tripp, Kenny and Conrad.

"Can you guys get the weapons? Clem and I will go get Kate and the kids."

Tripp nodded. "You're the boss. C'mon ladies, let's go."

Both Conrad and Kenny scoffed. "We'll see who's the lady..." Conrad mumbled.

Javier scoffed and looked at Clementine, gesturing for her to follow. She nodded and followed behind Javier as he went up the ladder behind Kenny.

They came out into the street, with the armory and hospital to the left of them. David stood up straight and pushed his three hostages ahead, leading them to the cathedral. Javier and Tripp exchanged a glance before Kenny mumbled something to them, then lead them to the armory.

Javier took a deep breath and shared a look with Clementine. "This is a bad idea..." She whispered, shaking her head.

"Come on," Javier said, leading the way to the hospital. "You seem to be pretty good friends with Hannah."

"Yea. So?"

"You giggle at half the things she says." Javier said with a smirk. Clementine rolled her eyes.

"She's funny." Clementine said defensively. "And... Very nice." She added softly.

"Why do you say that?" Javier asked.

"Maybe I've just been around all the wrong people, I don't know... But once you get past that crazy first impression, she seems like she really cares about people."

Javier sighed. "Not enough people care anymore." He said softly. "That's how the world's always been. That's why it's so special when you do find someone who cares."

Clementine contemplated Javier's words for a second before sighing. He was right.

"Hey!"

Javier and Clementine both froze and looked in the direction of the voice; down a dark alley. Out came Hannah, a bit winded. Her hands were trembling a bit.

"You okay?" Javier asked. Hannah swallowed hard and shook her head.

"M' fine, i'm fine..." She whispered breathlessly. Hannah looked up, meeting Clementine's eyes, and put on a smile. "Les' go."

Javier nodded, his eyes on Hannah's shaking hands, before continuing towards the hospital.

_ Here we go._

* * *

**(A/N)- Thanks for the reviews and the views this far! As you might've noticed, i'm planning on developing Hannah more as a character and exploring her relationship dynamics with other characters. Until next time!**


	16. Tremors & A Plan

Clementine followed Javier into the hospital without a word. The hospital walls were white, with a red sign on it. There was a brown word painted onto it that simply said 'hospital'. Beside her, Hannah radiated nervous energy, her hands shaking and a small frown on her face. She kept glancing right, as if she expected someone to be there.

"Would you calm down?" Clementine asked. Hannah perked up, clenching her fists to keep them still.

"Sorry," She whispered. Clementine rose an eyebrow at her. When they got up to the doors of the hospital, Clementine saw that they were painted green, with glass windows in the frame.

"Follow me." Javier said, going into the room.

"Hey, uh, this place has medicine, right?" Hannah whispered. Javier looked over at Hannah, raising an eyebrow.

"Uh... Yeah?" He answered.

"I need to get something." Hannah said nervously. "Be right back."

"Wait-"

Before Javier or Clementine could react, Hannah had vanished down a dark hallway.

"Jeez. What's up with her?"

"I don't know." Clementine replied with a shrug. Javier scoffed.

"Thanks for the insightful comment." He said.

Clementine snickered at that. Javier went into the room his family was in, with Kate sleeping peacefully on a cot while Gabriel and Mariana were slumped against each other in their chairs, sleeping. Clementine smiled at the sight. Javier smiled as well and he went over to Kate's side, kneeling down and gently nudging her shoulder. Clementine went around to Gabriel and gently shook his shoulder. "Hey, wake up."

Gabriel shook his head, lifting it up slowly. "Wha...?"

"Javi's here." Clementine said, taking a step away from Gabriel. At that, his eyes snapped open and he jumped to his feet, shaking his sister awake.

"Mari! Javi's back!" He said excitedly.

"Clem, can you go find Hannah?" Javier asked. Clementine nodded and left the room without a word.

She went back into the hallway, looking left and right. Moonlight came in through the windows, illuminating the hallway. She could see a few rooms down the hallway, each with a dark green door. Further down the hallway, she could hear the sound of cabinets being opened and closed. She followed the sound, going into the room where the sound was coming from.

Inside the room, a man with bloodshot eyes and a white lab coat sat, slumped over in his chair. It was Dr. Lingard. To the right, Hannah was rummaging around in one of the drawers in the room, desperately pulling out pill bottles, reading them, and then huffing in annoyance.

"Hannah?" Clementine asked hesitantly. Hannah's head jerked up, looking at Clementine. "What are you doing?"

"I need some medicine." She whispered. Clementine rose an eyebrow.

"For what?"

Hannah stood up, and Clementine saw that she now had a slight tremor over her entire body. However, it was the worst in her hands.

"In the hospital, we found our records or whatever, and the notes said that I was to take either Propranolol or Primidone. For tremors or whatever. I. can't. Find any!" She hissed, bending back down and sloppily rummaging through the medical cabinet again.

"Medicine like that would probably be locked up." Clementine said. "Um... Tremors? Do you know what's causing them?"

"No." She bit back. Clementine frowned, crossing her arms. "Sorry, it's just a thing that happens sometimes and I get really nervous and irritated when it happens because it doesn't feel good and I get tired and I start rambling and I'm rambling right now and i'm sorry..." Hannah pressed on, her voice becoming small.

From behind Hannah, Dr. Lingard groaned and shook his head, slowly sitting up. Hannah stood up quickly, spinning around to look at him.

"Clementine...? That you?" Dr. Lingard croaked. Then, his eyes flickered over to Hannah and narrowed. "You stealin' medicine?" He asked lowly.

"I need something for tremors. Can you give me something?" Hannah asked quickly, wringing her hands together. She tapped her foot against the ground and rocked back and forth slightly. Dr. Lingard propped his head up against his arm.

"That's what this is about? You want some drugs?" He asked. Hannah scowled, throwing her hands up.

"I'm not lying just to get drugs!" She said. Her hands had a noticeable tremble, and it was obvious that she couldn't control it. Dr. Lingard hummed.

"I'm sorry, I truly am, but we don't have any medicine fo' that."

"Is it because you wasted it all on yourself?!" Hannah snapped. Dr. Lingard frowned at her attitude.

"Is... David still alive?" Dr. Lingard asked hoarsely, turning his gaze to Clementine. Clementine rose an eyebrow at him, crossing her arms, and nodded at him. Dr. Lingard sighed, leaning back. He looked miserable.

"He won't be for long. He's got Joan on a warpath. David, he... He got me to care," He said. "When I was all alone, and he was there, he... Without him, I don't wanna care anymore. I just wanna die." He said, shaking his head.

Hannah's expression softened, and she crossed her arms, leaning forward a bit. It was honestly unsettling to see someone tremble the way she did- it looked unnatural. Felt unnatural. Something about it scared Clementine.

"Why're you tremblin', anyways? Neurological disorder? Autoimmune disease?" Dr. Lingard asked, looking back at Hannah.

Hannah shook her head, pursing her lips. "Doesn't matter I really just need the medicine and if you don't have it I oughta go out and look for some-"

"Hey!" Clementine said, reaching out and putting a hand on Hannah's shoulder. "Breath." She said gently. Hannah inhaled sharply, and then, a slow exhale escaped her. Her hands clenched and then unclenched as she tried a few more times. The shaking didn't stop, but it did lessen.

"That's why I was out the day we met, I was looking for some medicine," Hannah said softly. "That's why I've been alone all this time, my problems burden everyone else."

Clementine reeled back in surprise at that statement. To her, Hannah seemed pretty capable; what were a few tremors to her?

"I can't hold a gun steady like this-" Hannah continued.

"You don't need a gun, Hannah," Clementine said softly. Hannah looked down at Clementine, her eyes and face catching the moonlight in such a way that it made her appear ghostly. It was a bit haunting.

"I-"

"You have a crowbar. You don't have to hold a crowbar steady in order to swing it. You don't always have to kill a walker on the first try, either."

Hannah opened and closed her mouth, her face now blank. She stole a glance at Dr. Lingard, and then sighed, looking away.

"Did Javi tell you to come get it?"

Clementine nodded. "Yeah. It's time."

Hannah took a deep breath and nodded. "Alright... Yeah. Okay." She murmured. Clementine gave her a smile that she hoped was reassuring, and then turned, leading the way out of the room. Hannah followed silently, leaving Dr. Lingard alone in his room.

* * *

When they got outside, they saw that Javier and his family were waiting behind a wall. Javier caught Clementine's attention, and then when his eyes landed on Hannah, his expression immediately became concerned. Clementine and Hannah hurried over to Javier.

"What's wrong?" Javier asked immediately.

"Hannah needs medicine for tremors." Clementine responded. Hannah looked away, ashamed.

"Well, we need to get you some!" Gabriel whispered fiercely.

"Lingard says they don't have any for that."

"Seriously?!"

"Keep it down!" Kate warned, glaring at the kids. Clementine glared right back while Javier lead them to the building David warned them about. From beside her, she could hear Gabriel and Mariana bombarding Hannah with lots of questions. Her tone of voice indicated that she was growing uncomfortable.

"Shh," Clementine whispered. Gabriel and Mariana got the memo, thankfully, and shut up.

"Here," Javier said. The building looked like an old apartment complex, built with red bricks and with windows lining the wall. On the steps, Ava sat, anticipating their return.

"Took you long enough," She said, standing up. "Javi, you're with me. The rest of you stay here, where it's safe."

"Wait, where are we going?" Javier asked.

"We're going to give David some back up." Ava said. Ava's eyes flickered over to Hannah and she rose an eyebrow; however, she didn't say anything to her.

"What about Kenny? Did he come back?" Clementine asked, taking a step forward.

"Yeah. He did." Ava replied without looking back at Clementine. She turned, leading the way. Javier followed wordlessly. Kate sighed, shaking her head, and went up the steps, into the building. On the first floor, Kenny, Conrad, Tripp and Eleanor were all making small talk.

"Ah, good to see you all make it back in one piece." Conrad said with a warm smile. Clementine rushed over to Kenny, hugging him tightly. Kenny huffed and smiled, hugging her back.

"Good to see you too, darlin'." He said softly. Clementine pulled away, looking back at Hannah. She was lurking behind the rest of the group, biting her lip anxiously. Her arms were crossed, with her hands gripping her arms tightly.

"She's sick." Clementine breathed. Kenny followed her gaze, frowning.

"Sick? Sick how?" Kenny asked.

"She has these things called tremors... She said it's a thing that happens sometimes."

Kenny frowned, a sympathetic look on his face. "Poor thing." He said softly. "It must be scary, since she has no family here to help her either. No-one close to her." Then, Kenny looked down, frowning. "...I hope it doesn't kill her."

"It won't!" Clementine said fiercely. She couldn't let that happen. She couldn't lose anyone else; not now, not ever. She was almost at her breaking point when it came to losing people.

"What's wrong?" Eleanor asked, suddenly materializing next to Kenny. Clementine looked at Hannah, who was at the back of the room, eyeing everyone nervously.

"Clem says Hannah has tremors." Kenny said. Eleanor frowned.

"Tremors can be a symptom of all kinds of things... Does she know anything about it?"

"Hannah said that it's just a thing that happens to her sometimes. She was trying to get some sort of medicine from Lingard. Pro- prop..." Clementine began, and then frowned.

"Propranolol." Eleanor finished for her, a surprised look on her face. "I'm surprised she even knows what that is... She must know what's causing it, then. I'll go talk to her," Eleanor said, walking past Kenny and over to Hannah. Her head snapped up when she noticed Eleanor approaching her.

"I hope dad's okay." Gabriel said softly, frowning. Clementine rose an eyebrow at him. Studying the boy closer, she could see that David and Gabriel had the same eyes, and maybe similar facial structures, but other than that, she couldn't see much of a resemblance between the two. She especially didn't see any resemblance between David and Mariana. Thinking about it, Clementine didn't even see any resemblance between them and Kate, either. Clementine went over to Gabriel and Mariana, sitting on a stool next to them.

"So... David and Kate are your parents? I honestly thought Javi could've been your dad."

At that, Mariana snickered a little while Gabriel shrugged. "Kate's not really our mom. She's our step-mom." Gabriel said.

Clementine hummed in response.

"Where are your parents, Clem?" Mariana asked. Clementine paused, looking at Mariana with slightly wide eyes.

"Uh... They're gone." She said awkwardly. Based on the looks on their faces, she could tell that Mariana regretted asking that.

"Lots of people's parents are gone these days." Conrad said solemnly. Clementine glanced back at Hannah, frowning a bit.

"Can't remember the last time I saw my momma..." Conrad continued.

Kate frowned and crossed her arms. "I was there when my uncle-in-law and father-in-law passed."

At the mention of this, Gabriel and Mariana both looked down, frowning.

"My father-in-law, he had cancer, and he passed. Not long after, he came back, and... He bit his wife and his brother."

Clementine frowned at that while Tripp and Conrad both gave Kate sympathetic looks.

"Sorry to hear that." Kenny spoke up.

"Wait," Tripp said. "So, what's goin' on between you and Javi? I thought you two were a thing."

Almost immediately, Mariana rolled her eyes while Gabriel groaned in exasperation. Clementine's face scrunched up.

"Well, no, but-" Kate began, then shook her head. "He was always brushing me off." She muttered.

"Damn." Tripp said. "I'm sorry to hear that."

Clementine stood up without a word and crept away, with Gabriel and Mariana following. Clementine went over to Hannah and Eleanor, who were speaking on hushed voices.

"I can deal with it," Hannah was insisting. "I can help you guys, I swear-"

"I'm not saying you can't, but until you get that medicine or until the tremors go away, you're benched." Eleanor said firmly. "Do you understand?"

Hannah huffed and looked away. Eleanor sighed, shaking her head. "I'll leave you alone," She said, walking away.

"Geez..." Clementine mumbled. Hannah looked up, and then looked back down.

"She's right and I hate it. I'm not healthy right now, and if I try anything I could put the group in danger."

"Don't listen to her," Gabriel said. "There's still lots of things you can do to help!"

"I wish Shade were here." Hannah grumbled. Clementine reached out, putting a hand on Hannah's arm.

She looked at Clementine, her expression changing completely. Her frown melted away and she gave her a small smile, her lips twitching a bit. Clementine suddenly felt a rush of emotions overtake her. She wanted to stop Hannah's shivers; she wanted to wrap her in in a blanket. She wanted to protect her. She wanted to protect everyone she cared about... But most importantly, she wanted to protect that smile.

She needed a new reason to live- this would be it.

* * *

"That bitch..." David growled, clenching his fists. Javier stared at the ground, his arms crossed. Was this it? Had he made a mistake in trusting his brother?

Would he ever see his family again?

Just then, the door opened, and Joan came in, with a few guards trailing behind her. "David," She said. "I would like to have a conversation with you. A casual discussion."

"What is there to discuss? You've been raiding settlements! You have no proof against me!" David snapped.

"Oh, but I do." Joan said.

"Please, just let us go." Javier tried, stepping forward. Joan looked at him, amusement crossing over her face.

"How cute, but no. I'm the one in charge here." She said. "Now, come on, David."

David looked at Javier with an apologetic look, and then begrudgingly followed Joan. Javier recognized one of the guards as the person he didn't shoot the day he met Clementine. He wanted to say something, ask for help- but deep down, he knew it would be useless. He watched the door close, his heart sinking. Then, he turned, sighing.

Was there anything he could do? Could he kick the door down? Dig a hole? Break through the window?

Javier looked up, an idea forming in his mind. He'd seen a rather large metal bar on the ground in front of the blue lockers, as well as a slot in the window above where the bar should've been. If he could pry just one more bar off, he'd be home free.

He went around the sink in the locker room, coming to a section with shower heads protruding from the ceiling. There was a small wooden stool that appeared questionable to Javier- it could hold the weight of the kids easily, but certainly not an adult.

No matter. It wasn't like he was going to use it for an extended period of time. He picked it up, feeling to warm smoothness of it. It had collected a bit of dust down here, which Javier brushed off. He went to the over side of the room and set it down, stepping up. He made sure to grab the iron bar before climbing on top of the lockers. He didn't particularly feel like slipping and falling off of the lockers.

"Hey."

Javier froze for a moment, his face spinning around to look at the window. Hannah and Clementine had appeared, with Hannah trembling a bit. Regardless, she had a victorious grin on her face upon seeing Javier.

"Scared you, didn't we?" She asked. Javier smirked at them.

"You sure did. Can you help me pry these bars off?" Javier asked, passing the bar through the window. Hannah's arm flew out, grabbing it, and despite her unsteady hands, she positioned the bar between the other bars.

"Clem, help me with this," She whispered. Clementine nodded once, wrapping her hands around the other side of the bar. Javier carefully wrapped a hand around the bar as well, his hand between theirs. He pushed while they pulled, and then, two of the other bars broke off. Hannah and Clementine both stumbled back, falling flat. Clementine recovered quickly while Hannah froze, her eyes glazing over for a second, before Clementine pulled her to her feet. Javier crawled out of the window, standing up straight.

"You okay?" Javier asked, giving Hannah a concerned look. Hannah smiled brightly at him.

"I'm fine, really, I am," She said, stealing a glance at Clementine. "C'mon, Eleanor found us a safer place to stay. We'll take you over, and talk about an escape plan or something."

"Where's David?" Clementine asked. Javier grimaced, clenching his fists.

"Joan took him. We gotta save him..." He said. Hannah looked out at the town, her eyes darting all around, before she looked back at them.

"We can talk about that later. Follow."

* * *

Hannah and Clementine led Javier to another apartment complex entirely. Inside, the walls were pale green with a tan carpet. The doors were all a dark brown and made of wood, with golden handles. Hannah went around a corner while Javier and Clementine walked side by side.

"How'd you know where to find me?" Javier asked. Clementine shrugged, smirking it.

"Gabe, Mari, Hannah and I all peeked out the window. I'm surprised we didn't get caught, to be honest." She said. They rounded the corner and saw Hannah eyeing the doors. Her eyes locked on one and she carefully reached forward, pushing the door open. Inside, Javier could hear Tripp and Eleanor arguing. Gabriel and Mariana pushed past Hannah and out of the room. Their faces lit up when they saw Javier, both of them racing towards him and colliding with him, hugging him tightly.

Javier couldn't control the smile that came onto his face and he hugged them back. "Good to see you too, guys," He said warmly, smiling proudly at them. Javier's mind began working quickly- it suddenly occurred to him that, with David back, he would most likely have to give them 'back' to David so that he could raise them. Jealousy suddenly flared up inside Javier.

_ These kids are mine. __**I**__ raised them. _

Javier would have to talk to David about this once this whole thing was said and done.

"Come on, we should get inside before anyone sees us," Javier said. He ushered Gabriel and Mariana into the room, closing the door behind him. The room was simple at a first look, with a living room in front of him. There was a dark brown loveseat against the wall opposite to him, as well as a couch to his left. There was also an entertainment center with a black flat screen TV sitting on it. It had a later of fine dust on it, coating the entire surface area of the TV. The top of the entertainment center did as well. To the right of Javier, there was a doorway that led to the kitchen. Kate came out, a worried look on her face. However, relief washed over her when she saw Javier.

Javier smiled and walked over to her, hugging her gently.

"Javi, I was so worried..." She murmured, pulling away from him. Gabriel and Mariana each gave Kate weird looks, but didn't say anything about it. Hannah was lounging on the loveseat, dozing, with Clementine on the opposite side of the loveseat, studying her intently. "Come on, we need to talk." Kate said, leading Javier into the kitchen. There was an island in the middle of it with a white countertop, as well as light brown cabinets lining the white walls. On the right side of the room was a black oven with a white stovetop, as well as a silver microwave to the left of the stove. Tripp stood with his arms crossed, looking defeated, while Eleanor stood a good distance away in the same pose as Tripp. Kenny's head was in his hands, disappointment radiating off of him. Conrad looked bored, his face propped up on his arm. Ava stood next to him, her arms crossed with a generally annoyed look on her face.

"Javi's back," Kate spoke up, breaking the tense atmosphere.

"Good to see you, man," Conrad said with a smile, sitting up straight. Ahead of them was the dining room with a small, round table with only four chairs around it. There were two tall, spinning black chairs bolted to the ground on each side of the island in the kitchen.

"Good to be back," Javier said, nodding with a smile. "Listen. David's in trouble. Joan's got him."

Kate frowned, shaking her head. "Javi, i'm sorry about David, but we need to get out of here." Kate said firmly.

Ava's head snapped up, narrowing at Kate. "No, we need to help him." She said, agreeing with Javier. Tripp and Conrad exchanged a glance. Eleanor looked up at well, frowning.

"David's my brother. He's Gabe and Mari's father." Javier continued. He tried to keep his voice steady, but his voice sounded strained with the last sentence. Kenny looked up, seemingly catching on to his tone.

"Shit, man..." He cursed under his breath, and then looked up at Javier. "Fine. Clementine and I will help."

"Javi, you're a good man, and you've proven to be a loyal friend, too. I'm in," Tripp said. Javier felt relief begin to wash over him. Kate frowned, shaking her head and crossing her arms.

"You're all suicidal!" Kate hissed. Out of the corner of Javier's eyes, he saw Eleanor back into the dining room, peering through a window. Javier ignored her and turned to Kate, a frown on her face.

"David's their father-"

"But you and I raised them!" Kate exclaimed. Javier's mouth snapped shut, his fists and jaws clenching.

"I know that," He said through gritted teeth. "But i'm not their father. David is. They need their father."

Javier was hoping to convince Kate, but it really felt like he was trying to convince himself, more so than anyone else.

"Actually, she has a point," Kenny spoke up. "It doesn't always matter if you're their father or not. Trust me, I know." Kenny murmured, looking down. Javier paused, turning to look at him, a curious look on her face.

"Are... Are you talking about you and Clementine?"

Kenny chuckled and shook his head. "Ohhh No. We care about each other for sure, but I could never compare to the man who first found her when all of this started... His name was Lee. They were so close... Many people thought they were actually related. He was like a brother to me. God, I miss that bastard... My point here is that David may be their father, but in the end, family isn't always just blood."

Javier considered his words for a moment, and sighed. "I know... But we still need to help him. We can't just leave him hanging."

"Guys!" Eleanor spoke up. The group turned to look at her. "You really need to see this." She said, turning back to the window and parting some blinds. Javier went around the island and made his way over to her, peering through the blinds also. There, he could see the walls of Richmond, made from scrap metal and propped up on metal and wooden pillars. Outside the walls, however, was a huge herd of muertos.

"Oh my god..." Javier breathed.

"Whatever you decide on, we need an escape plan to go with it," Eleanor said.

"We have a base not far from here," Ava spoke up. "There's a truck we can all fit in. It'll be a tight fit, so I hope you don't mind getting cozy with one another." She said. "We need someone to go get it, though... That's the problem."

"I can go," Kate spoke up.

Javier nodded. "I'll go with you." He said. He looked down, frowning in thought. "Who else should we take?"

"Gabe can come with us," Kate offered. "Maybe Kenny and Clementine too, if you don't mind." Kate added, looking down at Kenny.

Kenny shrugged and stood up. "What about the cowgirl?"

"Uh-uh. She's staying here." Eleanor said firmly. Kenny shrugged.

"Yes, ma'am." Kenny said with a nod.

"Besides, she can keep an eye on Mari for us," Javier added.

"Here's a map of where it is," Ava said, pulling a folded piece of paper out of her back pocket. "Whatever you do, be careful. Here's one of the keys to the truck, too," Ava said, dropping a single small key into Javier's outstretched palm. He nodded and quickly placed it in his back pocket, and then unfolded the map, his eyes inspecting it. He nodded, folded it back up, and placed it in the same pocket as the key was in.

"Come on," Javier said to Kenny and Kate, leading them to the living room. Mariana was sleeping on the couch, with Gabriel keeping watchful eyes on his sister. Clementine was still watching Hannah, and Javier noticed that her eyes were on Hannah's trembling hands. Hannah had fallen asleep, and even in her sleep, she trembled. It was truly unsettling.

"Clem, Gabe," Javier spoke. They both perked up. Kate walked up beside Javier, smiling at Hannah and Mariana.

"We're going to get a truck," Javier said. Gabriel nodded and stood up, stretching. Clementine began to reach over to Hannah, presumably to wake her up.

"She stays here." Kenny said. Clementine looked up, frowning.

"What? Why? What if something happens when we're gone and something happens to them?"

Javier heard Kenny let out a quiet sigh before speaking. "Doctor's orders. Eleanor doesn't want her out doin' dangerous shit. Pretty sure she's in trouble for goin' to get Javi... And besides, there's still plenty of adults here to protect your precious cowgirl." Kenny added, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Clementine huffed, looking away in annoyance. Javier could've sworn he saw a tinge of red in her cheeks.

Javier smirked at that. "Come on... Let's go."


	17. Journey

_Wake up._

Hannah woke up with a start, sitting up straight. She panted a little, then swallowed thickly. She looked around and noticed Mariana had woken up. She was looking around, a confused look on her face. She looked at Hannah when she woke up, raising an eyebrow.

That was when Hannah noticed it; Clementine and Gabriel were gone. Hannah forced herself to breathe calmly.

"Where's Gabe and Clem?" She asked. Mariana shrugged, frowning.

"I woke up and they were gone." She said. Hannah huffed and stood up, walking into the kitchen. Ava, Tripp, Eleanor, and Conrad were all deep in conversation. Javier, Kate, and Kenny were all missing as well.

"Hannah, you're up," Eleanor said. Hannah nodded, her eyes darting around anxiously. Mariana walked into the room, a light frown on her face.

"Where's Javi and the others?" She asked.

"They went to go get a truck." Ava said simply. "Hey, kid, why're you shaking like that?"

Hannah looked at her hands, and then clenched them, looking back up. "I don't know. Also, my name's Hannah," She said politely.

"Y'know, we really don't know much about you, Hannah," Tripp said, turning to Hannah. "You just... showed up one day. What's your story?"

The memory she'd dreamed of came pouring back into Hannah's mind. She crossed her arms, looking down, and she shrugged.

"Been alone for a while." She said stiffly.

"How long is a while?" Conrad asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Uh... I don't know... A year?" Hannah guessed, shrugging. It didn't matter much anymore, anyways. It never did; why did people ask such pointless questions?

"You had to have been with someone when this all started." Ava pointed out. Hannah shrugged and shook her head.

"Won't talk about it." She said. "Sorry."

Tripp shrugged and turned away. Ava stood up and walked past Hannah, peering out of a window. Her eyes widened.

"They're building some kind of... Stage." She said, frowning. Hannah watched Ava for a few moments, blinking, and then flinched when someone knocked on the door.

"Hello in there?" A female voice spoke. Ava cursed quietly.

"It's Joan... Hide!" Ava snapped at them. Hannah grabbed Mariana and led her to the dining room, hiding behind the wall. The other three adults hid with her, fearful looks on their faces. Mariana looked petrified.

The door opened.

"Hello, Ava. No need to run; Lingard told me about Javier taking David's family and leaving the hospital. I assume his friends are here?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Ava tried, an edge to her voice.

"Oh, please. That's not going to work on me. Fan out and search for them. Ah, ah- Ava, don't you try anything."

A few guards walked in, sporting rifles and machine guns. Hannah immediately bristled, her eyes going wide.

"We found em'!" One of them called, cocking his gun. "Uh... What do we do about the girls?"

"Bring them to me. Let me see." Joan called back. One of the guards huffed.

"You heard her. Start walkin'."

"Come on," Hannah whispered, tugging a shivering Mariana along with her. In the living room, Hannah saw that a woman with a white streak was waiting for them, a smug look on her face. When her eyes landed on Mariana and Hannah, her eyes widened a bit.

"That's David's daughter," Joan said, gesturing to Mariana. "I don't know who you are." She said, looking Hannah in the eyes. Hannah stared back at Joan, her eyes wide. Joan looked up and smiled. "Ah, there they are. Javi's friends. Now, i'm going to need all of you to help me with something. Please, no need to be shy... Come along."

* * *

"Shh, breathe," Hannah whispered, an arm wrapped around Mariana's shoulder. David stood on a crate, his hands bound, with a noose around his throat. Tripp, Conrad, and Ava sat on their knees, their hands also bound behind their backs. Joan, for whatever reason, had decided to let Eleanor go- probably only because she was a doctor. Hannah and Mariana stood in the shadow of the stage, a guard behind each of them. A few people gave curious and concerned looks at the stage, as well as at Hannah and Mariana. A crowd was beginning to accumulate in front of the stage.

Hannah took a deep breath, her eyes darting around.

"Stay here." The guards ordered. Hannah looked over her shoulder and saw the guards going up some wooden stairs. Mariana looked up too, her lips trembling. She hid her face in her hands again as soon as she saw her father up there. Hannah swallowed thickly and looked down, her eyes darting around. In the distance, she noticed Javier, Kenny, Gabriel and Clementine round the corner of a building. They looked like they were trying to be discreet.

By now, nearly everyone in Richmond had gathered in front of the stage, with a chorus of murmurs being heard. Hannah sniffed, her eyes on Javier and the others. She saw Clementine and Gabriel both scanning the environments, and she saw Clementine's face turn in Hannah's direction. Based on the look on Clementine's face, something bad was happening.

Hannah glanced up and saw a guard standing at the edge of the stage, keeping an eye on her and Mariana. Hannah looked back at them, locking eyes with Clementine.

Clementine tapped on Javier's arm and gestured in their direction. When Javier looked, a horrified look came onto his face. Then, they slipped into the crowd.

Hannah gripped Mariana tighter, trying to ignore her own growing fear. She felt small. She felt weak. She could see members of the crowd pointing at them and whispering to each other. Hannah did her best to ignore it, but it felt like she suddenly became aware of everything in that moment. Every shift of someone in the crowd; every whisper; every cough, every sneeze, _everything_.

"You might be wondering why i've gathered you all here today," Joan spoke.

_Yeah, so you could kill us?_

"Well, it's quite simple; we've got a traitor among us!" She continued. "He smuggled thieves and murderers into our walls!"

"She's lying!" David snapped. "Someone do something! Stop this crazy bitch!"

Joan looked at him with an amused look on her face. "I had an interesting conversation with Eleanor not too long ago," Joan said. Hannah felt her blood beginning to boil. She was purposely trying to pit them against Eleanor. "I kindly convinced her to tell me about their vile plans. Javi," Joan said, looking into the crowd. "Would you like to join us?"

Mariana looked up, her eyes widening. Javier, Kenny, Gabriel and Clementine pushed their way to the front of the crowd.

"Mari!" Gabriel cried. Hannah and Clementine locked eyes. Hannah could see the fear in her amber irises; the dread. She'd seen this all before, one too many times. Hannah forced a smile onto her face, hoping to reassure them... And herself.

"You're lying! Your people attacked my family and shot an innocent girl!" Javier snapped. "You probably forced Eleanor to confess! Max, Badger and Lonnie confessed to raiding those settlements on _your _orders!"

"You have no proof of that." Joan replied. The guard standing at the edge of the stage moved away, aiming at gun at someone's head. "They all deserve to die for their crimes, and as added punishment, we'll take something away from you-"

"No!" Someone else spoke up. "Executing people... This isn't how we do things!"

"I can do what I want!" Joan snapped.

"Then don't let her!" Javier begged.

"You take your people and you go. Never come back." A man named Clint said.

Hannah couldn't stand this anymore. She slowly reached into the pocket of her hoodie and pullet out a small silver lighter, holding it behind her back. She lit it, and glanced at the stage. Her eyes looked back and forth between the crowd and the wooden stage, waiting.

Everyone's eyes were trained on the people on the stage... Except for Gabriel and Clementine's. Hannah held her lighter up a little, revealing the small flame. She couldn't help but to grin at the insanity of what she was about to do.

Gabriel put his hands on his head, clearly stressed, while Clementine put both of her hands over her mouth. Hannah looked at the wooden beams of the stage, holding the lighter up to it. One of the beams began to blacken, and then caught fire. Hannah took a few steps away from it, tugging Mariana with her. Mariana had been watching with wide, terrified eyes.

Hannah quickly flipped the lighter shut and stuffed it back into her pocket.

"Fine. Take your people and go," Joan said, her voice sounding smug. Clementine gently elbowed Kenny and nodded at the stage. Kenny peered at it, a confused look on his face. When he noticed the growing flames, his eye went wide.

Hannah began to back away, releasing Mariana. Mariana ran to Javier, hugging him tightly.

"Let her go," Hannah heard Joan say. By now, the flames had spread over the entirety of the side of the stage.

"WHAT THE FUCK!?" Someone snapped. Hannah's eyes watered as smoke wafted over to her. A few guards dived off of the stage. The crowd began to ripple, backing away. There was a moment of silence...

And then, the first gunshot rang out. Javier raced forward as the crowd finally dispersed, making a beeline for cover. More gunshots began to ring out, and Hannah turned to the stage, kicking one of the pillars.

That was all it took for that side of the stage to collapse. Ava cursed and lept off, attacking a guard and taking his gun. Hannah watched, backing away as the flames began to crawl up the stage. She looked up just in time to see a guard take aim for her. She ducked out of the way, finally taking action. She drew her crowbar and dove for cover, hiding behind a concrete traffic barrier.

Meanwhile, Clementine and Kenny were taking cover in a stairway that went down. Javier had managed to get a gun from someone and was shooting down the guards. He searched frantically for Tripp, Conrad, and Ava, and saw that they were nowhere to be found. Mariana and Gabriel stood on either side of Javier. He looked over, spotting Clementine and Kenny. Kenny's left shoulder had a large red spot on it that rapidly got bigger.

He'd been shot.

"We have to help them!" Javier said, dashing over. Mariana and Gabriel trailed closely behind him.

"Javi!" Clementine exclaimed, a relieved look on her face. Javier took aim, gunning down a guard.

"Hey," Kenny said simply, shooting a guard as well. Then, a smoke bomb sailed through the air and landed in the stairwell. As soon as it hit the ground, gray smoke poured out. Javier began coughing, as did the other people, and covered his mouth, turning and making his way out of the stairwell. With the smoke bomb going off- as well as others- it became hard to see or breathe.

The sound of an engine roaring suddenly belted through the air, and when Javier looked up, he saw Kate zooming down the street. She rounded a corner, making her way over. A man with a bandana and sunglasses threw a molotov cocktail at the truck. Much to Javier's dismay, it landed right in the engine. Kate swerved the truck, and Javier froze, realizing he was right in the path of the oncoming truck.

Before Javier could force his limbs to obey him, something pushed him out of the way, causing him to fall flat onto his back. The black truck zoomed past him and crashed into the gate.

The person beside him scrambled to her feet, and Javier saw that it was Hannah. She started towards the truck, only for it to explode.

Javier's heart skipped a beat at that. "KATE!" He screamed.

"Come on," Hannah said, helping Javier to his feet. Walkers began to pour in through the broken walls. "We gotta- gotta go find her."

"That whole stunt, with lighting the stage on fire? That was cool, but please, for the love of god, never do that shit again!" Javier called to Hannah as the two of them dashed over to the wreckage. Hannah shoved a walker away from them, and then stepped up to the hole, jabbing a walker in the mouth with her crowbar. Her face pulled back in a snarl and she shoved the walker back as Javier checked the driver's seat.

She wasn't in there.

"Kate!" Javier called. Hannah pulled away from the hole, backing away. She clubbed a walker in the head before turning and dashing away, calling out for Kate.

Near a lamp post, Javier saw David stomping on the head of a walker. He dashed over to him.

"Have you seen Kate?!" He asked frantically. David spun around, a look of anger on his face.

"You lost her?!" He snapped. Javier reflectively scowled at David. Kate was an adult- she wasn't always Javier's responsibility.

"YEE HAW!" A shrill voice cried. Javier perked up and saw Hannah throw herself at a walker. It had a domino effect on the other two walkers behind it, knocking all three of them down.

"What is she doing!? She's going to get herself killed!" David growled. Behind the walkers, however, Kate stood, an alarmed look on her face. When she saw Javier and David, she raced towards them, embracing Javier tightly. Javier returned the hug, hoping to calm her down. He could feel her quick breathing on his neck, as well as her shivering. Other than being scared, she was okay... Which was all javier had hoped for.

"She does that to distract walkers away from someone!" Javier replied, pulling away from Kate.

"The kids...!" Kate breathed, looking around frantically.

"I'm on it!" Hannah said. She turned, racing away. "CLEMENTINE! GABE! MARI!" She belted at the top of her lungs. She saw Kenny, Clementine, Gabriel and Mariana in front of what looked like a bank, facing off against a group of walkers. Hannah sighed in agitation. She held her head up and barked out another "YEE-HAW!" Which effectively drew some of the walker's attention away from them. Hannah jumped back, her heart slamming in her ears. She kicked one of the walker's legs out from beneath it, locking it in place for at least a few moments. A gunshot rang out and pierced the walker's skull, sending it falling over. Hannah clubbed an advancing walker in the head, then stomped on its soft skull.

"Get the knee... Like this!" Clementine said to Gabriel and Mariana. She drew her knife, advancing on a walker, and kicked its knee. It fell flat, allowing Clementine to bend down and plunge her knife into its forehead. Gabriel and Mariana both copied her while Kenny gunned down more walkers.

"Guys come on!" Hannah called, grabbing their attention. Clementine's face lit up and she was the first to follow Hannah as she led them over to Javier.

"Come on, this way!" David called once they were all together. They followed him into the apartment complex they'd been hiding in earlier. Once they were all inside, David slammed the door behind them, panting.

He didn't even waste a second before spinning around, aiming a glare at Hannah.

"What the fuck were you thinking?! That fire could've gotten us killed!" He snapped. Hannah reeled back, staring at David with a blank look on her face.

"David, man, come on- maybe it was stupid, but it saved our asses." Kenny spoke up, planting himself between David and Hannah.

"Yea, and besides, you're doing a fine enough job of that on your own." Kate snapped, glaring at David.

"I'm protecting everyone!" David argued, rounding on her. Kate didn't back down; she stood firm, her eyes locked with his.

"Whatever. I'm going on a perimeter check." David growled. "Gabe, Mari, you're with me." He said.

Both Gabriel and Mariana looked at Javier for approval, both sporting apprehensive looks on their faces. David noticed, and this seemed to tick him off even more. Javier remained silent, crossing his arms. He wanted to say no; he wanted to push David away from them and shield them from his scrutinizing gaze.

"I'll go with," Kenny said, noticing the tense atmosphere setting in.

"Okay..." Javier said. "You stay close to Kenny, okay?" Javier said as they began to walk away. David mumbled something under his breath angrily.

Kate walked up to Javier, a guilty look on her face. "I'm worried." She whispered.

"Kenny's with them, they'll be fine." Javier said.

"But did you see the look on his face when he spoke to us? He acted like we're... Soldiers or something. I hate it. I... I don't want the kids around him." She whispered. "And that's not all," She said, continuing forward. Now that they had time to stop and examine the environments, Javier noticed that they were in a fire escape. There was a stairway to the left of the hallway and a metal door to the right, with an 'EXIT' sign above with red, glowing letters illuminating it. Kate pushed the door open, entering the apartment. Hannah and Clementine shared a look and followed them.

"This place worked. It was functional. They had walls." Kate continued. "And then I fucked that up. I... I wanna fix this." She said. Javier took a deep breath and nodded.

"Alright," He said. "I'm with you, Kate."

Kate flashed Javier a grateful smile.

"Javi!"

Javier perked up and looked over his shoulder, spotting Conrad and Tripp. He felt relief wash over him and he stopped, turning around. He shook their hands, smiling.

"It's good you see you make it back in one piece, man," Tripp said. "Come on, Eleanor's tending to people. Ava's with her." He said. Javier and Kate exchanged glances before looking back at Tripp.

"Lead the way," Javier said. Tripp nodded and turned, leading Javier into a room. It was very similar in structure to the other one, with a few variations; the living room had a window on the wall opposite to him, as well as a dark brown hardwood floor. The kitchen was connected to the living room, this time with no walls separating the two. An injured man laid on the couch with a grieving woman at his side. Eleanor looked up, a solemn look on her face.

"What's up?" Javier said, looking at the man.

"He's been bit... We're trying to make him as comfortable as possible." Eleanor said. Clementine huffed and walked into the room, heading straight toward the window. Hannah followed her, parting the light brown blinds and looking through them. She sighed in disappointment and turned away, leaning against the wall. She crossed her arms and looked down.

"Where'd you get the idea to light the stage on fire?" Clementine asked. Hannah shrugged.

"I did it on an impulse, but... I won't do it again." Hannah said softly. Clementine frowned.

"Ignore what David or other people might say. That was smart." Clementine said with an encouraging smile on her face.

"Don't encourage her, Clem," Eleanor said. Hannah looked up at Eleanor, and then looked away. Clementine glared at Eleanor, and not-so-subtly flipped her the bird.

At that, Hannah snickered, smiling a bit. Javier rolled his eyes, crossing his arms. The woman who was crying beside the man stood up, holding an axe out to Javier.

"We have to cut it off!" She said. "Please!"

Silence fell over the room, and slowly, Javier reached up, taking the axe from her. He bent down, examining the man's arm.

"Are you sure about this?" Eleanor asked softly. Javier took a deep breath and nodded, holding the axe up. Eleanor inhaled and reached into her pocket, wrapping a tourniquet around his arm. Then, she nodded at Javier.

Hannah covered her eyes when Javier brought the axe down. The man screamed in pain when it made contact with his skin. The arm was partially severed, but not entirely. Javier suddenly felt nauseous and he cringed at the sight before him.

"Oh, god..." He said, shaking his head. He repeated the process, the arm coming off this time. Blood poured out of the wound and onto the ground. Javier stood up quickly, gagging at the sight. Eleanor got to work attempting to stop the blood. However, it appeared as thought her efforts were futile; the blood kept on coming, creating a dark red puddle on the ground. The smell of metal filled the air, making Javier feel even more nauseous than he already was.

Eleanor cursed under her breath while the other woman wailed loudly. Javier's jaw clenched, and just then, David, Kenny, Gabriel and Mariana walked into the room.

"The fuck's goin' on?" David asked.

"He was bit, so they tried to cut the arm of. It... Didn't work." Clementine answered. David rose an eyebrow at that.

Then, the sound of a gun being cocked cause Javier to froze. He looked up, seeing the crying woman pointing a black pistol at him.

"This is all your fucking fault!" She snapped. "My daughter- my husband- gone! I should kill you for this!" She snapped.

"Fern, please... Lower the gun." David said.

"Why should I? I could kill this asshole and be done with it," She said.

Then, Kate stepped in front of Javier, a sad look on her face.

"Fern, please," Kate said. "I'm the reason why the walkers got in. If you shoot anyone, shoot me, because it's my fault. I'm the one who destroyed the gate."

Fern hesitated for a moment, and then sniffed. She began to lower the gun.

Just then, David stepped past Javier and Kate, grabbing Fern's forearm and breaking her elbow with the other one. She screamed in pain while the others protested. David turned, shooting the man in the head, and then turned back to Fern, aiming his gun at her.

"Dad!" Gabriel exclaimed, racing forward and grabbing David's arm. David elbowed backwards, elbowing Gabriel hard enough to knock him down. Instantly, David's face became full of regret and he turned, looking at Gabriel with wide eyes. Mariana crouched beside her brother, giving her father a fearful look.

"Gabe, I- I didn't mean to!" He said, taking a step forward while Gabriel backed away. For a moment, he looked like a terrified little boy, before closing his eyes tightly. When he reopened them, his face twisted into a scowl and his eyes were filled with a fire that Javier had never seen before.

"Was breaking her arm necessary?! She can't even move!" Gabriel snapped. David closed his eyes, frowning.

"I'm trying to protect you!" He said, waving his arms around. He still gripped the pistol firmly, with his finger looking awfully close to the trigger.

"Then why are you pointing a gun at us?!" Kate exclaimed. David froze, looking at his hands, and then dropped the gun, shaking his head. He pushed past them and out into the hallway, grumbling under his breath.

Clementine gently tapped Hannah's shoulder, prompting her to uncover her eyes. Her hands trembled and her lips quivered at the sight of the severed arm on the floor. She swallowed thickly when she saw Fern as well, feeling a pit form in her stomach.

"I've seen him get this way before," Kate said softly. "Javi, could you please talk him out of it?" She asked, turning to look at Javier. Javier personally didn't want to, but regardless, he would.

"Alright, i'll... See what I can do." He said, following David outside. He went up to the top of the building, taking the stairs, and out onto the roof, where David stood out on the ledge, studying the environment. Javier walked up, examining the environment as well.

"I wanna show you something," David spoke up. "Come up here with me."

Javier obeyed, carefully stepping onto the ledge. He glanced down, and suddenly felt woozy at how high up they were. The sea of walkers would surely devour him in an instant if he made one wrong move.

"That place over there is the perfect spot for a trench," David said softly, pointing at a patch of land in the distance. "That building? A sniper's dream. I'm a solider, Javi... Nothing more, nothing less. A soldier can't be a father. Or a husband. A soldier is a soldier. That's that."

"Come on, man," Javier said. "You're my brother. You're Gabe and Mari's father. They need you."

"Be real, Javi. You raised em'. Both of em'. Back in the fire exit, they looked to you for reassurance, and it hurt more than I ever thought it might. To see might kids looking up to someone else."

Javier went silent at that and looked out at the landscape. "Regardless," David went on, "I'll do my best to protect you. I'm going to get you out of here, all of you, alive." He said firmly, clenching his fists. "Even if it kills me."

Just then, the door to the stairs opened. "Oh my god, I found them!" Kate called. Javier looked back and stepped down, turning to Kate. Following her was Clementine, Hannah, Mariana, Gabriel, and Ava. Kate peered over the ledge, her eyes on the truck. A look of realization crossed over her face.

"The hole, that's where they're coming from. We can fill the whole with the truck!" Kate exclaimed. David's face scrunched up at that, but he didn't say anything about it.

"Okay," Ava said. "But how do we do that?"

"We can use our bulldozer," David replied, putting his hands on his hips.

"Whatever we do, we better make it fast, because Kenny got shot and I don't wanna spend too much time away from him." Clementine said, crossing her arms.

"Of course," David said, stepping down. "I know the way. Follow me." He said, going to the other side of the building. There was a set of metal stairs on the building adjacent to them, meant to be used as a fire escape. David climbed onto the ledge, and then pushed off. He landed on the rusty metal stairs. They shook a bit under his weight, but thankfully, they didn't fall. Javier glanced at the others. Ava was the second one to go, landing in a similar fashion to David. Kate took a deep breath, and then went third. Javier could've sworn he saw the stairs jolt a bit dangerously when Kate landed.

"I'll go first," Gabriel declared, looking at the other kids. He set his face straight, and then looked forward. He climbed onto the ledge, and then, he pushed off, landing on the stairs.

Javier could've sworn that his heart stopped at that moment.

"See? Easy!" Gabriel said, turning to look at the other kids with a cheerful smile. He quickly went up the stairs.

Mariana was quick to follow her brother, and then Hannah stepped forward. She eyed the stairs for a moment before leaping. She crashed into the opposite wall and fell onto the stairs. Clementine and Javier both chuckled at her, watching as her face became bright red.

"What're you lookin' at?!" She quipped before hurrying up the stairs.

"Ladies first," Javier said, gesturing to the stairs. Clementine scoffed, rolling her eyes, and jumped off the ledge with a small grunt. Javier took a deep breath, waiting for Clementine to move out of the way. Once she did, he took a running start and then pushed off of the ledge, landing on the stairs. They jolted a bit under his weight, causing both he and Clementine to freeze for a moment. Clementine peered over the railing at him.

"Be careful." She warned. Javier only nodded in response, following her up the stairs. Ahead of them lay a pile of rubble with a few pieces of shiny metal sticking out. The rubble consisted of dirt and rocks, and they connected the building to a highway. Parts of the highway had caved in, and in order to cross, they would need to form a single file line. There was a cliff below the highway, causing Javier's heart to race. If anyone fell, they would be done for.

"Are there no other ways we could possibly take?" Javier asked.

"This is the only way." David said, nodding his head. "Be careful. Take your time when crossing." He instructed, climbing the rubble.

"Wait, that car," Mariana said, pointed at a red car without windows. "If we pushed it, it would be safer to walk across."

David paused, looking at the car his daughter pointed at. Then, he grinned.

"Good observation, mija," He said warmly. Mariana beamed happily, smiling.

"Javi, Gabe, come help me with this." David ordered, climbing the rest of the rubble. Javier and Gabriel hurried forward, climbing the rubble as well. David took the lead, walking over to the red car. "Watch your step here," David instructed, carefully climbing his way to the car. He positioned his hand on the trunk, where Gabriel and Javier both joined him. Together, they pushed, and then, the car lurched forward, rolling off the cliff. David huffed and stood up straight, looking over at the girls.

"Alright, it should be safe to cross," He said, climbing over the rubble to another section of the highway. Ahead of them lay a wreckage of a helicopter; it was way past its prime, with no hopes of ever starting again. Gabriel and Javier carefully followed David, where Gabriel walked to the edge of the wreckage. David grabbed his arm and tried to pull him away from the edge, only for Gabriel to glare at him and jerk his arm away.

"I know he doesn't see it, but David really is just trying to protect him," Clementine said from behind Javier. Javier looked over his shoulder at her. "Even if he's not the best at it..." She added. Hannah walked up beside them, staring at the helicopter. She looked at David and Gabriel, and for a moment, Javier could've sworn he saw a flash of sadness on her face. She walked past them, examining the helicopter.

"How do we get across?" Kate asked. Javier walked to the edge, standing to Hannah's left. He reached up, catching the propellor of the helicopter in his hands. He tested it, pushing down on it a little. He looked up at the other side of the intersection.

"You want us to swing?" Hannah asked, eyeing the propellor.

"If it means getting across," Javier replied.

"You're crazy." Ava said, coming up and frowning at the propellor.

"Crazy is our best shot." David said. "Lightest goes first." He said.

"I'll go first," Hannah said. Clementine gave Hannah a concerned look, frowning a bit.

"Are you sure?" She asked. Hannah looked back at Clementine and nodded once.

"'Course i'm sure! Watch me!" Hannah replied cheerfully. Javier stepped back, allowing Hannah to take the propellers. She eyes the other side of the interstate, and then paled a bit. Then, she looked forward, taking a deep breath. She backed up, and then too a few leaping steps. Then, she pushed off of the ledge, sailing through the air gracefully.

For a moment, Javier's heart felt like it stopped. Then, Hannah got to the other side, skidding her feet against the ground. She let out a rather loud breath of relief. She hoisted the propellor with as much strength as she could, sending it back to the group. Gabriel rushed forward, catching it.

"Now, when you go, don't push up too much..." David said, kneeling down beside Gabriel.

"I know what i'm doing." Gabriel said softly. He looked forward, his brows furrowed. He copied Hannah, taking a few large steps, and then pushed off the edge.

The process repeated until it got down to just Javier and David. Javier looked at David with a grin.

"After you," Javier said. "You're the older sibling."

David rolled his eyes, shaking his head. "That's never stopped for before..." He grumbled. He swang across, and when David was halfway across, the propellor lurched dangerously. However, he managed to get across to the other side. He swung the propellor back to Javier.

Javier took a deep breath, and then copied David. However, when he was halfway across, the propellor broke, sending Javier swinging downwards. He screamed in surprise and clung to the propellor tightly, his heart pounding.

"JAVI!" Someone called. Javier didn't know who screamed, but based on the pitch of the voice, it was definitely one of the girls. Above him, a walker with its lower half gon reached out for him. The smell wafted down to him, making him feel nauseous. He grabbed one of its rotting guts and swung it over, impaling it on a metal beam.

Carefully, he climbed the propellor, his heart racing and his palms beginning to grow sweaty. He gulped as he ascended. Kate appeared over the ledge, holding her hand out to him. Javier climbed higher, and then reached up, straining. His jaw clenched and his heart stopped when their fingers brushed.

And yet, it wasn't enough; he couldn't reach without letting go of the propellor.

Hannah crept over to the ledge, as far as she could. She examined the propellor, and then narrowed her eyes, drawing her crowbar. "He's too far away. If I could hook my crowbar around the propellor, I could pull him closer."

"You might detach it from the helicopter!" David said. "No!"

"It's our only chance!" Hannah retorted, spinning around to glare at David.

"You are NOT doing that." David hissed, scowling at Hannah. "You were already out of line with that fire; i'm not gonna let you fuck this up even more!"

"David, please," Clementine pleaded. David gave her an incredulous look.

"Do you really trust that lunatic?" He asked. "Look at her!"

Clementine glared at David, and then at Gabriel and Mariana. Ava mumbled something under her breath, shaking her head and cursing.

"Come on, David, it's our only shot." Ava said. David clenched his fists, scowling.

"And besides, I don't see YOU trying to help!" Clementine said. She looked at Hannah, her face softening. "What do you need me to do?"

Hannah frowned. "I don't know if you're strong enough for this..." She mumbled.

"I cut down an entire tree on my own, it'll be fine," Clementine said, brushing Hannah's concerns off. Hannah raised an eyebrow at Clementine, and then looked at the propellor.

"Javi, climb a bit higher!" Hannah said.

"I'm trying!" Javier retorted, hoisting himself up further.

"Okay, Clem, I need you to dangle me over the edge." Hannah said. "Don't mind my shivering." She added, the last part softly. She held a hand out, and Clementine took it with both hands. Carefully, Hannah dangled over the edge, hooking the crowbar around the propellor. She carefully pulled forward, straining. Gabriel joined Clementine in helping to keep Hannah steady, seeing as Clementine was beginning to strain as well.

The propellor didn't make a sound; it moved willingly, and then, Javier was able to grip Kate's hand firmly. They gripped each other's forearms. Hannah unhooked the crowbar.

"Pull me up," She commanded. Gabriel and Clementine did so. Then, Kate pulled Javier up, groaning while she did so.

Kate, Mariana, and Gabriel each rushed to hug Javier. Hannah put her crowbar away and looked down, twiddling with her thumbs. Clementine watched with a hint of sadness on her face, while Ava had a happy, relieved look on her face. David scoffed, rolling his eyes ,and turned away.

"C'mon. Let's go." He ordered.

* * *

The group made their way to a water tower, where a truck, a motorcycle, and a bulldozer lay, undisturbed beneath them. Surprisingly, there were only a few walkers in the area. David glanced at the truck. At the bulldozer. Then back at the truck. Meanwhile, Javier, Kate, and the kids all inspected the bull

"We need to leave." He said suddenly, turning to the group.

"David, what the fuck?" Kate snapped, rounding on him.

"This place is a lost cause. We should go back home. Be together as a family. Clem, Ava, you're coming too." David said.

Ava reeled back in surprise while Hannah only crossed her arms and looked at the motorcycle. Javier's fists clenched. What about Kenny? What about Hannah? He glanced at Hannah again, and the forlorn look on her face only fueled his rage more.

"David, no! We need to help Richmond!" Kate snapped. Gabriel and Mariana exchanged fearful glances and backed away from their parents while Javier turned, his shoulders squared.

"You're just gonna abandon this place?" Javier asked. David crossed his arms, glaring back at both of them.

"I know when to abandon a fight, and-"

To everyone's surprise, Kate stepped forward, slapping David across the face. "No! We are not your soldiers, David!" She spat. David stood with a dumbfounded look on his face, and then glared. Kate removed the ring from her finger and threw it at him. "I can't believe I married you..." She said, stepping back to join Javier. David looked between the two of them, and then, pure rage overtook him.

"Have you two been coinciding against me this whole time?!" David growled. At this, the kids of the group began to share nervous looks, while Ava looked extremely uncomfortable.

"What?! No, I-"

However, Javier's protests fell on deaf ears as David ran to a garage in front of them, pulling the door open. Then, he ran inside, grabbing a wrench, and then ran at Javier, letting out a loud cry.

"DAVID!" Ava and Kate both exclaimed simultaneously as David tackled Javier to the ground. Javier grunted and instinctively shielded his face.

"Dad!" Gabriel cried, running forward. He grabbed David, attempting to pull him away from Javier, only to get clocked in the forehead by a the wrench. Mariana screamed in fear, running forward and grabbing Gabriel. Kate cried out as well and rushed forward, pulling Gabriel away from the scene. Ava tried to stop David as well, only to be met by the same fate.

Javier didn't fight back; he only shielded himself from David's onslaught. David didn't seem to notice; he only continued his string of assaults.

That is, until a gun pressed itself against David's head. David froze, his arm raised, and looked at the owner of the gun. It was Clementine, giving him her famous death glare. David's jaw clenched and he let out a breath through his nose, getting off of Javier.

"We're helping Richmond." She said lowly. "With or without you."

It was strange to Javier- just a few days ago, this girl was pointing a _gun_ at him, and now, she was defending him. She even knew David better than Javier, didn't she?

"Fine." David growled. "But you're doing it on your own." He said. He stood up, turning his back on everyone, and trudged away.

Javier scrambled to his feet, turning to David. He reached for him, opening his mouth to say something.

And yet, nothing came out.

Slowly, Javier closed his mouth and watched him go. So many emotions coursed through Javier as he spun around, facing everyone. The crestfallen looks on Gabriel and Mariana's faces both broke his heart and filled him with an ungodly rage; a mournful look on Kate's face filled him with sorrow; one disappointed look on Hannah's face filled him with a strange contempt towards David.

He looked at Clementine, and she returned his gaze. A few silent words seemed to be exchanged with just one look.

_ I can't believe he would do that, _From Javier.

_ I'm sorry,_ from Clementine.

"Come on." Kate said weakly, turning and climbing into the bulldozer. Gabriel climbed onto the ridge above the right wheel while Javier climbed onto the left wheel. Mariana climbed into the cab with Kate, sniffling. That's when Javier saw the eyes on his niece and nephew glistening, as well as streaks of tears going down their faces. His head and heart hurt, and he suddenly had the urge to go find David and strangle him.

"I'm taking the motorcycle." Clementine declared. She looked at Hannah. "Would you keep me company?" She asked weakly. Javier glanced over at Clementine, and he saw the conflicted look in her eyes. She obviously cared about what was happening; she just didn't seem to know what to say or do about it.

"Sure, but um... Do you know how to drive?" Hannah asked, raising an eyebrow at Clementine.

"I'll take the truck," Ava said. "Go after David, I guess." She grumbled, going over to the black, shiny truck. Javier watched her, and then looked at Kate, nodding.

"Alright," He said. "Let's gather some weapons and clear out."

* * *

By the time they'd gotten back to Richmond, it was dark, with a slight drizzle coming from the sky above. The gates to Richmond were shut, with a few walkers wandering around up front. Javier instantly felt repulsed at the sight, raising his gun and taking aim. He heard gunshots ringing out on the other side of the bulldozer, as well as the revving of a motorcycle behind him. Adrenaline began to course through Javier's veins as he gunned down the walkers.

"Javi! Get in the busket!" Kate barked out.

"The what?!" Javier barked back, confused.

"THE BUSKET! THE- THING IN THE FRONT!" Kate yelled back, nodding towards the basket attached to the bulldozer. For a moment, Javier wondered who decided to name it that before obeying and climbing to the basket in the front. Kate lifted it up to the controls of the gates, where Javier quickly climbed out of the busket. He quickly hurried over to the controls, and panic overtook him. He didn't know how to work them.

He faltered for a moment before his hand flew to a green button, pressing it down frantically. To both his relief and surprise, the gates opened, allowing them inside. Clementine and Hannah zoomed ahead on the motorcycle, with Hannah noticeably pale. Kate revved the bulldozer, steering inside. Mariana looked terrified, while Gabriel gunned down walkers mercilessly, his face twisted with a look of rage on his face. Kate had an intense look of concentration on her face, and Javier saw that she was going for the black truck now. The fire on the stage had long since gone out, with only a pile of ashes in its place.

Javier closed the gate and quickly rushed down to the ground, gunning down walkers that got too close to the bulldozer or the two girls on the motorcycle. More gunshots rang out, and ahead, a few walkers collapsed, revealing Tripp, Conrad and Eleanor.

"Are we glad to see you!" Javier called.

"Help us clear these fuckers out!" Tripp barked.

"On it!" Javier replied, taking aim again. To his dismay, however, his gun was out of bullets. He scowled, putting it away and instead drawing out his metal bat. He swung at any walker who got close. He kicked, smashed, pushed, shoved, fought his way through the herd, ignoring everything else around him. He was one being in an ocean, fighting tooth and nail to get out; and he would, even if it was the last thing he ever did.

He was vaguely aware of the revving of the bulldozer. He didn't even hear Kate cry out in victory when the hole was patched up. All he could focus on was killing the damn walkers.

They broke Richmond, and by god, they were going to fix it.


	18. AN

**Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed my first complete fic, 'Tread carefully.' I know some parts were lacking a bit in terms of quality, but nevertheless, I tried my best. The story is not over yet; Tread Carefully was really just establishing the characters who are alive, as well as developing their personalities a bit. I'll try my best to have a sequel out ASAP. Thank you for taking time to read this story!**


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